Why do I have so many masters?

Wuxin endured the oppressive force, his complexion slightly pale, a sweet metallic taste rising in his throat, gritting his teeth, clasping hands in salute, he said:

"Wuxin of the Ministry of Punishment greets the Pillar of the State."

"We are currently apprehending two of the empire's top criminals, and we ask the Pillar of the State not to obstruct us."

Three feet above the ground stood a man, appearing mighty, though no longer young, his aura surpassing that of young men. His eyes flared wide, and upon hearing, suddenly burst into laughter:

"Well done, Wuxin of the Ministry of Punishment! Well done, Ministry of Punishment in handling cases! If I obstruct you, would you accuse me of harboring criminals and colluding with enemy states?!"

Wuxin replied in a somber tone, "This subordinate does not dare."

"Well then, you do not dare!"

Still enraged, the Pillar of the State pointed below, at the Ministry of Punishment's martial soldiers equipped with Liangzhou City's armory, and rebuked, "Then tell this old man, who gave you, a mere Sixth Rank arrest officer of the Ministry of Punishment, the right to depose the Fourth Rank officer of Liangzhou City?!"

"And who gave you the qualification to suppress this matter without reporting it?"

"Who gave you the audacity to alone take control of State City's official affairs?!"

"Are you attempting rebellion?!"

Wuxin remained silent and said, "I was ordered to handle the case, ignoring other matters."

"My actions are solely for apprehending the criminals involved."

The burly elder standing in the void angrily said, "Apprehending criminals, that is your Ministry of Punishment's affair, I do not care, but you, as a mere Sixth Rank patrol officer, dare to seize one city's authority, suppress and not report. This old man will hold you accountable for this!"

"If I do not intervene today, it is Wuxin today, and tomorrow there would be another acting the same way, who can stop it?!"

"Each official does their assigned tasks, not interfering with each other, preventing power from falling into one person's hands, which is the fundamental law on which our Great Qin was founded. The adverse consequences you cause by disregarding the imperial court's laws, can they be compensated by the heads of two criminals?!" Vi^s%i-t My V&i$r&tua$l L-ibr&a+r.y! E%m#p%ire! (*M_#VLEM$P$YR)& for mo&re+.-

"Not long ago, a Roll Mink Prefect suppressed officials, abused their power recklessly, the incident has barely passed, and you wish to reopen this precedent? Today I will take you to uphold the law!!"

His fury at this time had resolved him to press down boldly this reckless person, even if Wuxin's actions indeed were for apprehending Ministry of Punishment criminals.

With a vast territory like Great Qin, only when officials do not interfere with each other and follow their laws can the empire be maintained bright; if everyone in the Ministry of Punishment acts this way, often mobilizing authority from various places, in less than ten years, the entire Great Qin would fall into chaos, local officials would tremble incessantly while the Ministry of Punishment monopolizes power.

Such adverse consequences, even if just a seedling, in his eyes, are more important than any top criminal, as the latter only causes turmoil to one county, but the former truly brings endless calamity, affecting generations.

Besides, there is another reason, which is equally important.

Upon hearing, Wuxin's expression changed slightly, knowing someone must have been whispering in the ear, he was just about to step forward to refute, but the elder already waved casually, coldly said, "If you acknowledge me as the Pillar of the State of Xianping County, then withdraw for today."

The martial soldiers of the Ministry of Punishment's expressions changed, exchanged glances in silence, initially silent, then slowly retreated, collected their weapons, seemingly triggering some mechanism, the encirclement of martial soldiers, which had begun to form, started to retreat.

Though some in their hearts might feel somewhat unwilling, or have much resentment, yet the one speaking was, after all, a Pillar of the State of a county, with towering prestige accumulated over time, and this Pillar of the State, who had fought bloodily on the battlefield, had indeed solved many of Xianping County's problems over the past decade, earning the respect of the populace and subordinates.

Though Wuxin's conduct was fierce, he was respected by all, yet indeed the time was short, and he could not compare to the influence of the Pillar of the State.

The previously formidable formation of Heavenly Nets Earthly Traps broke almost instantly.

Broken from within.

Wuxin's expression remained cold and calm, his right hand unconsciously clenched, while two martial soldiers stepped forward, bowing their heads not daring to look at him, the one on the left whispered:

"Sir, the orders are so, we... we have no choice..."

Wuxin spoke not a word, opened his right hand, allowing the two to remove his longsword and mechanical crossbow, Tie Lin nearby bore the same demeanor.

Though being two renowned arrest officers, with considerable power, they were ultimately only Sixth Rank officials, directly under the Ministry of Punishment, yet the Pillar of the State did not fall under the jurisdiction of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries, reporting directly to Emperor Qin.

The previously looming murder disappeared, as if it had never appeared.

In a dim and lonely silence, Wang Anfeng suddenly feigned nonchalance, stepping forward one step, while all others retreated back, only he came forward, as though going against the tide, exceedingly conspicuous.

The elder in the sky furrowed his thick brows, clearly already displeased, his friend had perished during the Mid-Autumn festival, now the Ministry of Punishment had created such a huge mess, his mood already leaning towards fury, barely suppressed by sheer will, he coldly said:

"Who is below?"

"Why do they not comply with orders?"

Wang Anfeng replied with an indifferent expression, raising his gaze at the Pillar of the State, the Grandmaster, as if looking evenly, he said:

"You hold your office, I walk my path."

"Does the great Great Qin not allow a common person to walk their way?"

His words were exceedingly impolite, hiding needles within silk, the elder's suppressed gloom and anger instantly ignited as if a large cluster of fire was thrown into it, setting it ablaze like an explosion. The fierce and mighty aura pressed down heavily, causing the entire street to slightly sink in an instant.

The overwhelming pressure, enough to easily crush a small city, instantly concentrated and fell directly on the young man below. His clothes, originally fluttering in the wind, suddenly hung heavily as if made of iron.

In those days, this elder was only forty years old when he used this move to single-handedly block thousands of cavalry, fighting a fierce battle day and night before finally escaping. Those who approached were crushed to pieces, earning him the name "Iron Wall" across the land.

Now aged, his inner strength insufficient but his aura more refined, he re-enacted this move without the slightest decline, focusing the pressure entirely on Wang Anfeng's shoulders. Apart from the initial descent, causing the entire Shanyue Workshop to sink an inch, it did not affect anyone else. Such control was even more terrifying than when he first gained fame.

The elder was slightly breathless, his anger barely suppressed, yet still mindful that those below were citizens of Great Qin, not unleashing his power entirely. As he was about to withdraw in self-mockery, Wang Anfeng stepped forward once more.

The elder's expression slightly changed.

After stepping forward, Wang Anfeng took another step. The pressure increased, but he seemed to walk more smoothly, with his skin turning a faint golden color under his clothes.

The Buddha's Strength Mountain Moving Sutra, with this technique, Ci can carry mountains and walk. Although Wang Anfeng paled in comparison to his master, who was suspected of achieving the Great Grandmaster level and the Zen Buddhism Bodhisattva Fruits, in exerting this Buddhism secret technique, his strength was equal to that of any expert.

In this moment of public scrutiny, the aura around that Pillar of the State was vast and overwhelming. Even others could feel the suffocating pressure, yet the young man in the direct line of fire seemed indifferent, his expression relaxed as he strolled forward.

Due to using the secret technique, Wang Anfeng's speed was not fast, appearing to others as a hot-blooded youth relying on his high martial arts skills, deliberately embarrassing the Pillar of the State. The street grew more silent, and everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on Wang Anfeng, unable to refrain from sighing.

Some thought the youth was truly reckless, as if not fearing for his life, while others admired his high martial arts and courage. Those who knew his connection with Wuxin Tielin could faintly guess his intentions, their eyes showing a hint of surprise.

The Pillar of the State himself was momentarily stunned, only regaining his composure after several moments.

Indeed, after the past battles, having reached such a high position, even nobles of the Imperial Family showed utmost respect to him, observing junior formalities. For over twenty years, he had never encountered someone so daringly reckless.

Already suppressed anger surged, and with a cold laugh, he acknowledged the feat.

The previously restrained aura instantly surged like floodwaters from a breached dam, crashing down from his surroundings. The immense strength carried with the aura clashing, forming vast, visible white gaseous waves, the power now more than doubled compared to before.

The stone-paved ground began to crack, fallen leaves and dust in the air started to press down. In just a few fleeting moments, cracks climbed the walls, shedding dust from them.

With the elder's current might and aura, if a battle began, just standing in the city center and releasing his aura would shatter the entire city into dust within a few sticks of incense time. Such is the Grandmaster, demonstrated profoundly through this alone.

Wang Anfeng had just lifted his foot, striving to stabilize, barely preventing his right foot from heavily stomping on the ground. The Shaolin Golden Bell Shield, along with the circulating Buddha's Strength Mountain Moving Sutra, had reached its limit at this point.

If his clothes were lifted at this moment, you could see his skin was all a brilliant gold, dazzling to the eyes and impossible to look at directly. If he couldn't hold on now and relieved these two martial arts, even with his robust vitality, he would suffer internal organ rupture and severe injury on the spot.

As he secretly lamented the increasing force, feeling he had no choice but to call upon the Qi mechanism behind his Divine Weapon, the overwhelming pressure suddenly disappeared, and he immediately reacted.

It wasn't that the pressure vanished, but another overwhelming Qi mechanism intruded, scattering his aura haphazardly, instantly reducing the force applied to him by seventy to eighty percent. In contrast, it felt as though there was no pressure at all.

Due to the inertia from the resistance, Wang Anfeng even staggered forward a few steps before stabilizing. Luckily, he had just turned into a dark alley; otherwise, he would have made a fool of himself. He then rose, adjusted his breath, turned to look, his expression slightly solemn—

"Who is it?!"

To be able to use the Qi mechanism to break a Grandmaster Pillar of the State's proud move, even though the latter hadn't used his full power, how could it be determined that the newcomer had indeed used their technique?!

Such martial arts Qi mechanism is truly beyond belief.

Numerous Ministry of Punishment Martial Soldiers naturally couldn't detect this shifting Qi mechanism, yet at this moment, from the other end of the Shanyue Workshop street, heavily obscured by the Martial Soldiers, a slow, elderly voice suddenly emerged:

"Such a stench, such a stench, who's farting? Indeed, it's both loud and smelly. As the saying goes, loud farts don't stink, and stinky farts aren't loud. This one's both loud and smelly, which peculiar fellow let out such a unique fart? Unique, unique. Impressive, impressive."

Around the Pillar of the State in mid-air, the white gaseous waves had yet to dissipate, still continuously forming. In everyone's minds, an extremely indecent and disrespectful thought emerged involuntarily, then they hurriedly lowered their heads to suppress it.

The Pillar of the State's expression remained unchanged, merely snorting coldly, and demanded:

"What petty thief?! Hiding like a coward, aren't you going to come out?!"

From the other end of the street, a silvery bell-like voice suddenly laughed:

"Old man, someone's calling you a petty thief, how impressive..."

The elderly voice chuckled:

"After all, he's a Pillar of the State, a pillar indeed. How could he possibly look up to us bowmen and dogs? It's only natural to look down on us."

Wuxin proactively stepped aside, allowing the many Martial Soldiers to belatedly step back, creating a passage, letting the Pillar of the State, whose expression turned grim, meet face-to-face with that old and young pair.

From the depths of the pitch-black street, out walked an old man with a spirit three parts heroic and candid, his demeanor seemingly boorish and rude, yet more so free-spirited and magnanimous. Beside him, a young girl with long hair tied into a ponytail with a golden-red ring, her expression noble, smilingly asked:

"Pillar of the State—is it a very high position?!"

The elder raised his hand, gulped a mouthful of wine, eyes lifting, as cold as electric frost, glanced at the Pillar of the State above whose expression had also turned solemn. He smiled and said:

"Whether high or not, I don't know."

"Whether to fight or not, that's worth asking."

PS: Today's first update presented...... three thousand six hundred words.