Chapter 22: Provocation

The next day at work, not a single bit of surprise could be seen on the faces of the bureau employees after they saw the penalty notification sent out by the system and knew of the penalty target. Since ancient times, the dragon clan had conducted themselves in an ostentatious and arrogant manner due to their noble lineage and strong innate magic power. They had always held ordinary yao cultivators in contempt.

At birth, the majority of the dragon clan possessed the ability to freeze and summon rain, thunder, and frost. Not only did they receive human sacrifices, many yao also had to bow to them on sight. And it was precisely because of this that certain brash dragons would cause heavy rain or snow to descend if they were in a bad mood or were playing around, bringing misery to the humans and animals in the human world.

This sort of situation had only gradually taken a turn for the better after the boss took charge of the cultivation bureau. They had originally thought that the boss would definitely side with the dragon clan because of his ties to them, but who would have expected that it would be the exact opposite in reality? Not only was the boss not biased towards them, he was very harsh towards them.

In the past close to ten years, the sum of the violation tickets the boss had issued to the dragon clan was even enough to buy real estate in the capital. They had previously guessed that the boss might not be on very good terms with the dragon clan, but other than fining them according to the regulations, the boss had not gone to the dragon palace at the bottom of the ocean to look for trouble, so there was still no proof to substantiate this way of thinking.

After deliberating about it from all angles, they could only arrive at one conclusion – that the boss was upright and plainspoken and would definitely not be biased against any one side because of race.

“Two million is a tiny amount to the dragon clan. It’s just that this Northern Lake azure dragon appears to be the Dragon King, who would be able to take him away?” Chu Yu turned and looked at everyone in the room. Everyone turned their heads simultaneously, not meeting Chu Yu’s gaze. It wasn’t like they disdained their lives for being too long; who would want to go up against the dragon clan?

“Lin Gui, I remember that you’re from the sea…” Chu Yu’s line of sight eventually landed on a youth at the corner wearing a checkered jacket.

“Yu ge, my family’s ancestor was once even the deputy of the dragon clan. With just my little ability, how would I dare to capture a dragon? That Northern Lake azure dragon is a freshwater dragon; I think you’re more suited to handle this matter,” Lin Gui shook his head vigorously. “Let me off, okay?”

“What would I go there for? Deliver myself to the azure dragon to be eaten?” Chu Yu conceded defeat instantly. Coughing dryly, he said, “Capturing the dragon isn’t important. Let’s first send this penalty to the dragon clan. What if this Northern Lake azure dragon feels remorseful and gives himself up?”

“If you think about it, it’s not like we’re breaking the law,” Zhang Ke mumbled in a low voice. The past few years, a certain dragon clan had committed numerous misdeeds at their own pleasure, which had caused natural calamities to strike certain areas. There was no end to the damage done. If not for the boss pressuring the dragon clan the past few years and teaching this dragon clan who didn’t take other living creatures seriously a thing or two, they would probably be even more unbridled in behavior.

“Don’t assume that us fishes have bad hearing just because we don’t have ears on the surface of our original forms,” Chu Yu turned to look at Zhang Ke. “Our hearing is perfectly fine. I heard your muttering very early on; if you’re so capable, go ahead.”

Zhang Ke: He might be a man, but he couldn’t be capable at this moment.

“Why not…” Xu Yuan’s voice was a little weak. “Why not let the boss personally capture him?”

Everyone, “…”

If everything had to be done by the boss, then what use were they?

Half an hour later, flashes of thunder and the sound of lightning could be heard from outside the windows. A downpour ensued, and a man in a black shirt pushed open the door, walking in directly.

Chu Yu and everyone else turned around simultaneously. Although this man had a somewhat handsome appearance, his pretentious brows and eyes made it clear to everyone present that he was a person accustomed to being arrogant.

Suddenly, a powerful wave of dragon pressure emanated from the black-clothed man, preventing most of the yao cultivators present from suppressing their natural instincts. Some sat while others squatted – they cut rather sorry figures.

“You want to imprison me for ten years just like that?” The black-clothed man raised his chin slightly, his arrogant gaze sweeping across all the living creatures in the room. “A bunch of useless creatures.”

“Sir azure dragon, even if you are the dragon deity in charge of a lake, you shouldn’t provoke our bureau,” Chu Yu was protected by the Fate of Dao, and wasn’t in too terrible a state before the might of the azure dragon. He glanced back at his fellow colleagues. Although they bickered with one another all the time, he couldn’t bear to see them being bullied by an outsider.

“Even a fish dares to challenge me?” The azure dragon smiled coldly. With a wave of his arm, Chu Yu whose fighting strength was equivalent to one half of a goose, flew out and slammed into a table. The table turned over and he landed beside Zhang Ke’s feet.

“Yu ge, are you all right?” Zhang Ke helped Chu Yu up from the floor. Xu Yuan and a few other human cultivators stood in front of Chu Yu – some held magic weapons while others held onto a string of talismans. A fight could break out at any moment.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

At this tense moment, the sound of footsteps that were neither too fast nor too slow could be heard. Everyone in the room came to a stop and looked towards the entrance at the same time.

“Bang.”

The door that was half-closed was pushed open and Zhuang Qing, who should have been on leave this day, appeared in front of everyone.

“I was wondering how impressive the legendary Boss Zhuang is, but it turns out that you’re nothing more than a mixed-blood dragon,” The left corner of the Northern Lake azure dragon’s mouth hooked up, his voice filled with ridicule. “What bureau? All you’ve done is set up a small theatrical troupe with a few human and yao cultivators who can’t make it onto the stage. What do you think my dragon clan is?”

Zhuang Qing cast a glance at the office. With a wave of his hand, all the things regained their original appearances, and even the pressure intentionally released by the azure dragon was suppressed by him. “Fifty years ago, the previous Dragon King of the Northern Lake also spoke to me in this way. After that, you became the Dragon King of the Northern Lake.”

Seeing that Zhuang Qing could actually suppress his dragon power, the Northern Lake azure dragon’s expression turned somewhat ugly. “I am a dragon whose cultivation is ranked in the top ten of the azure dragon clan. I might be the Dragon King of the Northern Lake, but it’s a position beneath my status.”

“Heh,” Zhuang Qing smiled. The smiling him was incomparably handsome, just like fresh flowers that bloomed amidst winter snow.

Yet, all the creatures with the exception of the Northern Lake azure dragon broke into shivers. The human cultivators originally shielding Chu Yu took a few steps back, heartlessly leaving Chu Yu at his spot. Chu Yu patted his chest in an attempt to force out a mouth of blood to no avail.

“I am very appreciative of confident creatures,” Zhuang Qing had acted very quickly, so quickly that everyone hadn’t yet reacted. Not long after, the abnormally arrogant Northern Lake dragon was trodden on by Zhuang Qing’s foot, unable to budge.

“The previous Dragon King of the Northern Lake still has another fifty years to go before he can leave the spirit lock formation. If I only sentenced you to ten years of prison, I’m afraid the other dragon clans might lodge a complaint against me for being biased.” Zhuang Qing was expressionless as he said selflessly, “So, I’ve changed my mind. You violated the cultivation world’s management regulations by entering the bureau without permission and deliberately harmed the bureau’s employees. After adding up these crimes, the punishment will be altered to a hundred fifty years of prison and a fine of five million.”

“The previous Dragon King was only sentenced to a hundred years of prison, on what basis should I be given fifty years more than him? This isn’t fair!” The Northern Lake azure dragon asked in fury.

“The previous Northern Lake Dragon King was a white dragon,” Zhuang Qing commented leisurely. “The color white puts me in a good mood.”

The azure dragon, “…”

Only then did he realize that he had provoked someone difficult to deal with. He gnashed his teeth in anger. “Zhuang Qing, aren’t you scared that your actions will cause my uncle to blame you?”

Zhuang Qing released his foot and used spiritual qi to bind the northern lake azure dragon. He stooped and looked down at the azure dragon. “Who’s your uncle?”

“You!” The azure dragon brimmed with hatred. “Zhuang Qing, are you not afraid that your conduct will cause you to be alienated by the entire dragon race?”

Zhuang Qing took a piece of wet tissue from the office table to wipe his hands and shot a glance at the azure dragon. “Drag him off and lock him inside the spirit lock formation.”

Zhang Ke and Old Huang were very obedient subordinates. They pulled on the azure dragon’s legs and forcibly dragged him away.

“All of you…” Only after the azure dragon was towed away did Zhuang Qing turn and look at everyone who had their heads lowered and necks shrunk back. “If you still don’t cultivate well, it’ll spread outside that my bureau doesn’t have a single person who can fight. Don’t you find that embarrassing?”

No one dared to speak.

“Boss, Ning Xuan and Chao Yun are still very powerful,” Xu Yuan said softly. “And with you around, how can we not have a single person who can fight?”

Ning Xuan was the incarnation of an ancient famed sword whose main purpose was to slaughter; one blow could behead a thousand people. Chao Yun was an extremely pretty Feng hairpin and was the favorite item of the only female emperor in the history of China. After the death of the female emperor, the Feng hairpin transformed into a human. Having received the Fate of this regent, Chao Yun’s cultivation was very profound. In recent times, both of them had gone chasing after great yao and still hadn’t returned.

If the two of them were around, they wouldn’t be this embarrassed. There was no way around it, who asked them to all be administrative workers and not military officials?

Zhuang Qing stared at them for a long time before leaving silently with a displeased expression. It was necessary to recruit two people capable of fighting during this recruitment. It was fine even if their cultural achievements were a little poorer; the bureau already had enough administrative staff.

“Little Fu, you’re solving problems again?” In the security guards’ restroom, Zhang Shan walked in with a lunchbox. Seeing that Fu Li was writing at a tremendous speed, he went forward and took a few looks before noiselessly shaking his head and sitting on a chair at the side. Little Fu’s passion for studying was indeed worthy of praise, but the way he wrote really couldn’t be considered nice-looking.

“En,” Fu Li rubbed his dizzy head, feeling that he had wasted too many years of his life. How were human heads wired to be able to think up such difficult questions?

The elderly man mopping the floor at the side drifted over and looked at the questions. Then, he continued bending his waist and mopping the floor. “Isn’t the answer to this question 86.957?”

“Really?” Fu Li looked in amazement at the elderly man who was mopping the floor. When he flipped to the attached answer sheet at the back of the book, the correct answer really was 86.957.

“This is just a simple question on probability. Although numbers appear complicated, the solving process is not difficult,” He patted Fu Li on the shoulder. “Young man, continue working hard.” Although from the way Fu Li looked, he didn’t seem like someone who could enter university by self-studying. However, his spirit was laudable.

Fu Li watched the elderly man’s back as he slowly made his way out of the rest room. Once again, he had witnessed humanity’s intelligence and greatness. Their status as the most intelligent of all living creatures had not occurred by chance. Rather, it was inevitable.

“Scared?” Zhang Shan laughed. “That elderly man was once a math teacher in a reputable high school. He has been working for many years after retirement. According to him, his memory isn’t very good now and he’s afraid of holding the students back, so he came here to search for something to do.”

“Why does he still want to go out and do something?” Fu Li couldn’t understand. “Isn’t the retirement pay for teachers said to be quite good?”

“This uncle has a good heart and couldn’t stay idle. It was said that he provided financial aid to multiple poor students living in the mountains,” Zhang Shan opened his lunchbox and shook his head. “I’m not very clear on this either, but this uncle’s character is very good. If you don’t understand anything, you can ask him. It’ll still be better than scratching your head on your own and making wrong guesses.”

Fu Li looked towards the entrance. The elderly man was mopping the corridor outside, seemingly in great spirits.

A long while later, Fu Li’s brows furrowed slightly.

T/N: You’re not the only one FL, sometimes I wonder whether my head’s screwed on right as well…