Biochemical Martial Arts: Supreme Heavenly Venerate

Lin Rui very much wanted to exchange immediately for the Imperial Flame Battle Dragon, but he was plunged into a busy state afterwards.

This assassination attempt was undoubtedly another major Heavenly Demon case, and the Assassination Bureau was inarguably responsible for it.

It was a typical assassination case, the facts were clear, but there was still much to investigate, such as how so many people had infiltrated the city?

How were they able to set up an ambush near Yongye Street silently and seamlessly, was there any secret assistance or even collaboration?

Those buildings where the people were hiding, whose properties were they? What relationship did they have with this group of assassins?

Moreover, the sixth-realm sovereign battle dragon that Lin Xi had shot down from the sky had been identified as belonging to Shi Rongzhi, a doctor in the Ministry of Works.

Lin Xi had not killed the battle dragon but had instead knocked it out and captured it, so this person was still alive, necessitating immediate apprehension to investigate any accomplices.

So, what followed was quite extensive, fortunately, this case could be handled in conjunction with the previous Luo family estate case, and there were not many matters that required Lin Rui's personal attention.

Lin Rui was then summoned once again by a few high-ranking Divine Envoys.

The Emperor and three Divine Envoys had high praise for Lin Hao's shattering of the assassination plot by the extraterritorial Heavenly Demons, and they had no qualms about the nearly one hundred Heavenly Demons he mercilessly slaughtered; they admired his actions immensely, yet they were also tremendously angered.

In the past 50 years, the extraterritorial Heavenly Demons had become increasingly rampant and audacious within the Great Song territory, daring to set an ambush inside Luoyang City, targeting a court official for assassination, targeting none other than Lin Hao, the current head of the Assassination Bureau, which could be said to touch the bottom line of the Emperor and several Divine Envoys.

Especially since this case involved Shi Rongzhi, who was a fourth-rank doctor in the Ministry of Works!

This position, within the Ministry of Works, was already at a pillar-like level, yet such an important person was also an extraterritorial Heavenly Demon?

This indicated the degree of infiltration these extraterritorial Heavenly Demons had within the Great Song dynasty.

Luo Wangshu was even more infuriated; this time, the three of them had been lured out of the city by a wanted criminal of the Great Song dynasty to no avail, and meanwhile, their own homes were nearly robbed.

His most proud and trusted disciple had almost died at the hands of these Heavenly Demons.

At the same time, Luo Wangshu felt reassured that Lin Hao, relying on his abilities and talents, had not only emerged unscathed this time but had also dealt significant damage to these extraterritorial Heavenly Demons.

Luo Wangshu thought to himself that this child indeed did not disappoint her expectations and could be trusted with great responsibilities!

She indeed wanted to find a reliable partner among those extraterritorial Heavenly Demons, but this did not mean they could act recklessly under her watch.

After Lin Rui reported the details of the case, he also updated them on the Luo family estate case.

The Emperor and two Divine Envoys were very dissatisfied with the progress of the case, yet they had nothing to say.

They all realized that Lin Hao was intentionally delaying, but the problem was that this man had already been targeted by an extremely perilous assassination for this case, making it hard to say he had not exerted his best effort.

And currently, the three deputy heads of the Assassination Bureau actually leading the investigation each had their backgrounds and acted according to their directions.

What surprised them was that Lin Hao then requested a Dragon Guard attendant's qualification from the Divine Envoy Monitor, citing the need to ensure his safety.
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"A Dragon Guard? Even a grown Dragon Guard from the Dragon Guards?"

The second Divine Envoy, seated high on the throne, looked through multiple hanging curtains with interest at this new head of the Assassination Bureau, "Lin Hao, the distribution of Dragon Guards follows the court's regulations. If you wish to increase your guard, you could as well hire private Protectors.

And being the head of the Assassination Bureau, you should face difficulties head-on, endure hardship, and brave bloodshed. Did this assassination scare you into a frightened bird?"

Hearing this, Lin Rui's expression remained calm as he bowed respectfully, "Divine Envoy, I do not fear death! I only fear not being able to preserve this useful body to serve the nation, to eliminate demons and ensure peace for the people of Great Song. I could hire private Protectors, but I come from humble beginnings, my household is modest and my salary limited, I can't afford it. Please, Your Majesty and the Divine Envoys, see clearly!"

Upon hearing this, the second Divine Envoy laughed lightly; he knew this matter couldn't be stopped.

Lin Hao's request for a Dragon Guard was justified and legitimate. If the Divine Envoy Monitor rejected it, once the court officials and the common people came to know of it, who knows what they would think and discuss.

And Lin Hao had originated from being a Government Official and was known for his integrity and incorruptibility in office; he genuinely didn't have the funds to hire Protector household staff.

The second Divine Envoy, curious, asked, "Lin Hao, which Dragon Guard has caught your eye in the Dragon Guards?"

Lin Rui respectfully bowed, "Third-rank Saber Dragon Guard Xian Yu Yan!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Wangshu raised her eyebrows slightly, thinking to herself that this disciple of hers indeed had good taste, but she exchanged glances with the several Divine Envoys and the Emperor through the curtain, and all their expressions turned somewhat strange.

All of them knew of Xian Yu Yan's talent and strength, yet they all let this woman serve as an instructor in the Dragon Guards for a reason.

For Lin Hao to incorporate Xian Yu Yan into his command, it would not be easy.

"You have good taste, Xian Yu Yan's lineage is of the seventh realm, surpassing emperors, and her Sword Dao is of an imperial level. Among the adult Dragon Guards, she has the highest potential," said the Emperor also with a cold voice, "I can grant you a Dragon Guard position, and you may recruit Third-rank Saber Dragon Guard Xian Yu Yan, but you must convince her yourself without coercion."

Upon hearing this, Lin Rui joyfully bowed in response.

Only after obtaining permission from the Divine Envoys could he take hands off and recruit Xian Yu Yan.

This was certainly not easy, but Lin Rui firmly believed that with a good swing of the hoe, there was no wall corner that couldn't be dug through!

Just as Lin Rui was about to take his leave, the first Divine Envoy suddenly spoke, "Lin Hao, did I hear you mention earlier today that the six-realm surpassing emperor 'Unyielding Heart Dragon' belongs to your sworn sister Zhou Yunxi? Is this Zhou Yunxi the daughter of the fourth-rank Imperial Censor Zhou Rang? A descendant of the Zhou family from Wang City?"

With these words from the first Divine Envoy, the atmosphere inside the hall turned strange.

Several Divine Envoys looked at the Emperor with unusual expressions.

Two years ago, Imperial Censor Zhou Rang had openly criticized the Emperor's desire to levy additional taxes, involving around three million civilians from the direct-controlled territories near Wang City for the construction of 'Divine Refinement Platform'.

The Emperor ultimately could not have his way and harbored intense hatred towards Imperial Censor Zhou Rang, eventually finding a fault with him, sending him to prison to die and demoting those who had advised alongside Zhou Rang.

At that time, both the court and the public felt it was unfair to the Imperial Censor Zhou, and they deeply sympathized, but the Emperor had his reasons, and in his anger, even several Divine Envoys in the court could not stop him.

Nobody expected that shortly afterward, news came from the Wang City jurisdiction that the entire Zhou family had been exterminated by castrates within the court!

This incident caused a great uproar in the court and led to extreme disappointment among many court officials towards the Emperor.

They didn't foresee that, with Zhou Rang already dead and the Zhou family's Dragon Combat heritage about to vanish, the Emperor still wouldn't let the Zhou family go and was determined to annihilate them completely!

You should know that the so-called 'Castrate Faction' is effectively the Emperor's faction.

The court officials of the Great Song were at the joint behest of the Emperor and the divine spirits. The Emperor and the royal family had limited trust in external officials, often placing more trust in their own inner eunuchs.

Fortunately, the Zhou family still had a surviving orphan girl who, it is said, was guarded by Lin Hao and thus survived.

That is another reason why those of the Imperial Censor's bureau held Lin Hao in high regard.

This was also the primary reason Yuan Chengkai was stripped of his position.

Those clear streamers were extremely dissatisfied with Yuan Chengkai, the Governor General of Shazhou, and the local Prefectural Governor Li Changguo.

Li Changguo was bearable since he made some rectifications afterward, but Yuan Chengkai was likely a disciple of the Emperor's faction and could have been involved in the catastrophic extermination of the Zhou family.

Thus, when Yuan Chengkai's case broke, not only did no one in the court speak for him, but those clear streamers also attacked him in groups.

Now, the first Divine Envoy suddenly mentioning Zhou Yunxi was undoubtedly a slap in the Emperor's face.

"Responding to the Divine Envoy! Zhou Yunxi is indeed the daughter of Zhou Rang," Lin Rui clasped his hands and answered, "Fearing that she would face oppression if she stayed in Wang City jurisdiction, I brought her to the capital."

"I see, the Zhou family was exterminated by treacherous people not long ago, indeed no precautions can be overlooked," The first Divine Envoy replied with a light laugh. "Observing this girl's six-realm surpassing emperor alongside a fifth-realm emperor-ranked Sword Bone Demon accompanying her, and given her impressive martial arts talent that allows her to withstand eleven moves from an eight-realm battle dragon without dying, her strength is quite remarkable. I wonder if she would be willing to serve the court?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Rui was exhilarated, realizing that Lin Xi's luck had arrived.

Among the three Divine Envoys of the Imperial City Department, the second Divine Envoy was in charge of managing the Imperial Dragon Controllers, the third Divine Envoy was in charge of finances, while the first Divine Envoy was in charge of overseeing the celestial bureaus.

While the Commander of the Imperial City Department nominally managed everything, he was actually just a human stamp.

This nominal supervisor responsible for assessing official promotions, in truth, all celestially ranked promotions above third rank, whether in the celestial bureaus or the Imperial Dragon Controllers, were personally overseen by the Divine Envoys, with the Imperial City Department Commander also responsible for internal oversight, although part of this authority was also usurped by the treacherous bureau.

Lin Rui answered without hesitation, "Divine Envoy, the Zhou family has been loyal and righteous for five generations, passing on loyalty and righteousness within the family, their unyielding spirit to serve the country remains unchanged, and that 'Unyielding Heart Dragon' is the proof!"

"Well done!" The first Divine Envoy clapped vigorously, giving a slight praise, "In the Imperial City, there are positions for nine 'Supervisory Envoys,' each in charge of one area, stationed at one gate. The Supervisory Envoy for the Chengtian Gate has been vacant for three months now, as we've been unable to find a suitable candidate.

I think this child is quite suitable. Conveniently, the Imperial City Department will conduct a grand Heavenly Demon Test tomorrow. You may let your sworn sister take the test."

Lin Rui's eyes brightened, thinking how fortunate Lin Xi was.

The position of Supervisory Envoy ranks from the fifth grade! Within the celestial bureaus, it is next to the fourth-grade celestial officials.

Moreover, within the capital city, the nine Supervisory Envoys, their positions are akin to the nine gate imperial eunuchs from the ancient Ming dynasty, responsible for supervising the imperial guards and the divine strategy troops at the nine gates of the city.

They are also responsible for gate security, inspecting people and goods, patrolling at night for fires, organizing neighborhood watches, and executing court orders and arrests, their authority quite substantial.

The Chengtian Gate is the main gate of the Imperial City, the most important of the nine city gates.

The Supervisory Envoy for Chengtian Gate is also the one among the nine gate Supervisory Envoys with the heaviest responsibility, the least benefits, and the weakest authority—yet it is still a rank at the fifth grade!

Lin Xi was now going to rise above Vice Supervisory Envoy Zhuang Mingyue.

Lin Rui couldn't help but look up at the throne in front of him.

He couldn't see the Emperor's expression through the curtain, but he felt the temperature in the hall had dropped to freezing.