From Celestial Official to Great Celestial Venerable

Chapter 57 Jing'an
ding ding ding-

The sharp blade shot out from Su Liao's sleeve like lightning, transforming into a long, emerald-green rainbow that swirled in the sky, barely managing to deflect all eighteen cold stars.

As the silver needles scattered and flew, a wave of scorching heat rushed towards her. Before the intense heat even touched her body, it had already made a few strands of her hair curl slightly.

"Has this person gone mad?!"

Su Liao's heart trembled violently. She quickly made a magic hand seal with her slender fingers, and a gust of wind suddenly rose from her sleeve, instantly condensing into a curtain of water that stretched across the sky in front of her.

This cloud and rain technique, which was originally meant to nourish all things, has now become a protective barrier.

Zi La La——

The water curtain and the crimson palm force collided violently, and the billowing white mist, like molten iron falling into water, enveloped half of the long street in a misty haze.

"Qin Chuan! How dare you..."

Before Su Liao could finish speaking, a yellow dragon suddenly emerged from the water curtain and roared angrily!

The turbid waves, carrying the power to split mountains and shatter rocks, forced her unfinished words back down her throat.

This is precisely the "Flowing Dragon Running Through the River" technique, a secret transmission from the Chuandu Supervisory Bureau.

At first, it was like a babbling brook, but by the middle of its journey it had transformed into a raging dragon, with the muddy yellow waves concealing immense power, cutting through the air, and carving out deep ravines wherever it went, even where there were no rivers!
A foul stench assaulted her senses, and Su Liaoyu's face paled.

She simply couldn't understand how Qin Chuan, a mere sixth-level Qi Refining cultivator, could unleash such terrifying Daoist techniques one after another.
"Wood Spirit Heavenly Polygonum!"

At the critical moment of life and death, the grass ring on his wrist unfolded instantly.

The lush green vines grew wildly, forming a thicket, and the white flowers bloomed like stars. A unique fragrance filled the air, making pedestrians on the street feel drowsy and sleepy.

"Once you fall into a deep sleep, I will make sure you are utterly disgraced!"

Su Liao gritted her teeth and activated the secret incense, only to see Qin Chuan form an ancient hand seal, with the golden bottle phantom above his head casting down countless rays of light.

The pervasive fragrance, upon touching the golden light, vanished without a trace, like morning dew meeting the sun.

"How can it be!"

Her pretty face turned deathly pale.

This calming incense, which has always been effective, has suddenly become completely ineffective today?

Qin Chuan treads on flowing clouds, his fists surge with earthy yellow light that pierces straight through the vine-bound prison.

The Five Elements True Qi circulates without obstruction, protecting the body from all attacks—after days of arduous cultivation, although his realm has not increased, his foundation has become as profound as an abyss.

He felt confident that even if he were to fight Yue Chen, who was at the eighth level of Qi Refining, he could fight to a draw. This was the source of his confidence to go to the meeting alone!
Boom!

The vine cage shattered instantly.

Su Liao wielded her sword and slashed repeatedly, but when the green blade touched the golden bottle's aura, it only sparked.

Seeing the force of the punch approaching her body, she had no choice but to use the still imperfect "Ten Thousand Trees in Spring" technique, her jade palm gleaming with emerald light as she met the punch head-on.

Fists and palms collided, creating shockwaves like a tidal wave!
The doors and windows of the entire street shook violently, and debris flew two or three miles away.

"puff--"

Both figures were sent flying backwards at the same time, their clothes stained with blood.

"Qin Chuan!" Su Liao's black hair danced wildly, her eyes turning bloodshot, all traces of her former gentleness gone. "How dare you hurt me!"

Enraged, he abandoned all pretense of strategy and lunged forward, ready to fight to the death.

Just then, a long horn sounded from the sky.

"The Jing'an Guard has arrived!"

Four golden chains, like dragons emerging from a cave, instantly bound the two men's hands and feet. A majestic celestial vessel appeared amidst the clouds, with four golden-armored divine officials standing with their hands on their swords. One of them spoke with a voice like thunder:
"Unleash the Immortal Binding Rope, and submit to the law!"

The moment the golden rope was applied to them, the two felt their spiritual energy become stagnant, and their overwhelming fighting spirit vanished instantly.

Su Liao slumped to her knees, while Qin Chuan forced himself to stand tall despite his injuries.

The Jing'an Guard, who was at the head of the group, stepped forward slowly, his black iron boots clanging on the bluestone slabs.

His gaze swept over the two of them like lightning, and he said in a deep voice:
"Send your name."

Qin Chuan took a deep breath, suppressing his surging blood and qi, and respectfully replied:
"Qin Chuan, a Taoist priest from Nongling Temple, has disturbed you fellow Taoists. I was just exchanging skills with my senior sister and got carried away and couldn't stop myself. I hope you will forgive me."

The Jing'an Guard turned to look at Su Liao: "And you?"

Su Liao's face was deathly pale, her lips trembled slightly, and she suddenly pointed at Qin Chuan and said in a shrill voice:

"He's talking nonsense! This person clearly intended to do something wrong, and I had no choice but to act in self-defense!"

"Oh?" Jing'an Guard raised an eyebrow, then looked at Qin Chuan again. "Is this true?"

"That's absolutely not the case."

Qin Chuan met the scrutinizing gaze of the other party with composure:
"If I truly had malicious intent, why would I need to act in front of everyone? During our fight just now, my senior sister's moves were ruthless, and you all should have seen that clearly."

Jing'an Guard carefully examined the injuries of the two men. Seeing that Qin Chuan's clothes were torn at the chest and Su Liao had burn marks on her sleeves, he pondered and said:

"Since you are both injured, we will treat this as mutual fighting for now. Come with us to Jing'an, and the truth will be judged."

At this time, more and more onlookers gathered, and whispers could be heard everywhere.

A sharp-eyed person recognized Su Liao: "Isn't that Fairy Su from the Agricultural Academy? Why is she fighting with someone in the street?"

Another person chimed in, "I saw it clearly; it was the boy who struck first."

"Nonsense! It was clearly that woman who summoned the flying sword first!"

Amid the commotion, the Jing'an Guard waved his hand in signal:

"Send someone to find out what happened and see what exactly went wrong."

A golden-armored celestial official descended upon hearing the sound.

A short while later, he emerged from the Cloud and Mist Pavilion and reported:

"Reporting to the captain, someone did hear someone shout 'Test of cultivation' and 'Challenge' just now, and then this battle broke out."

Upon hearing this, Su Liao's face paled even further. She looked up and saw the golden-armored celestial official standing on the flying boat, scrutinizing her. He asked in a deep voice, "Why do others say that you were sparring? Do you know that falsely accusing a colleague is also a serious crime?"

Su Liao's expression shifted uncertainly, her lips trembled slightly, but she couldn't utter a single word.

"There were many eyewitnesses at the scene, and we also witnessed your fierce duel," the leading Jing'an official said calmly. "This evidence will be submitted to the office for a public trial later. We handle countless cases like yours every year. To put it bluntly, it was just a heated exchange during a friendly spar, and different situations require different handling methods."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the two men: "The fact is, you were indeed fighting each other. If you're willing to reconcile, you can settle it privately; if not, then come with us back to the station for a medical examination to determine the nature of the fight based on the severity of your injuries. In my opinion, you're both seriously injured, especially..."

His gaze fell on Qin Chuan: "He looks more seriously injured than you. If this kind of injury is judged according to the Heavenly Laws, you two will both inevitably go to the Heavenly Prison, the only difference being the length of your sentence. Now you can discuss it yourselves, whether to settle it privately or through the official channels."

After saying that, he turned and walked to the side, leaving the two people bound by the Immortal Binding Rope alone.

"Senior sister, please think it over carefully."

Although bound, Qin Chuan remained calm and composed. "We are both Daoists of the Heavenly Court. If we leave criminal records, it will forever add a stain to our resumes. At that time, if Senior Sister still wants to be promoted to Vice Abbot and pursue a future, it will probably be a pipe dream."

"Qin Chuan! Did you plan all of this? You deliberately made a scene to lure the Jing'an Guard in, just to escape?"

Su Liao gritted her teeth and said hatefully.

(End of this chapter)