I Can Extract Divine Power

Chapter 433: Chapter 167: Amber Awakens

He felt he needed to clarify a few things with Shen Bai to avoid future trouble.

He couldn’t quite gauge Shen Bai’s temperament. If Shen Bai was acting on impulse and later came to regret it, the fallout would be incredibly difficult to manage.

His intentions were good; he meant nothing else by it.

Shen Bai shook his head. "You don’t need to concern yourself with anything else. Nanxing Prefecture was leaderless before, but today, I, Shen Bai, have come to take the seat of Prefecture Chief. The Observatory now has its leader."

"The eight words, ’The imperial right to act first, report later,’ are the standard by which the Observatory operates. Forget a Capital City; even if a high official from Xuanjing City itself wanted to make a move against me, Shen Bai, I would bring them to heel first."

After Shen Bai said this, Fang Hong didn’t dare say another word. He just nodded quickly in agreement.

The Prefecture Chief had made himself perfectly clear. As a mere member of the Ding Division, he certainly wouldn’t dare run his mouth.

"Men! Escort everyone from the Gao Family back to the Observatory’s dungeons. Interrogate them harshly and uncover the mastermind behind this!"

No one dared to disobey. They escorted the members of the Gao Family, still subdued by the Blood Red Sword Qi, back to the Observatory.

...

On the way back, countless citizens watched from a distance. The scene was simply too grand to ignore.

Members of the Observatory marched along, escorting the numerous people of the Gao Family in a long procession.

The members of the Gao Family were suppressed by the toxins from Shen Bai’s Poison Avoidance and Rejuvenation Skill, leaving none of them with the strength to resist.

From time to time, the chatter of the citizens could be heard.

"Who is that? How come so many Lord Officials are following him the moment he arrives?"

"I don’t know. He must be a high-ranking official, or he wouldn’t have such an entourage."

"Aren’t those the members of the Gao Family? They’re always throwing their weight around in Nanxing Prefecture. Looks like they’re finally getting what they deserve."

"Looks like that young Lord Official must hold a very high rank. Otherwise, he’d never be able to take them down."

The citizens’ murmurs rose and fell in waves.

Shen Bai walked at the head of the procession.

Fang Hong followed close behind, his gaze occasionally drifting to Shen Bai’s back as a myriad of thoughts churned in his mind.

Because the Observatory in Nanxing Prefecture had been leaderless, its members had always been constrained, unable to act freely.

They had assumed Shen Bai’s arrival was merely a formality. With his immense background, they figured he was just here to pad his resume for a while and wouldn’t change the status quo at the Observatory.

But they never expected his very first act upon arrival would be so monumental.

A new official is said to light three fires to establish their authority, and this first fire was burning brightly indeed.

Yet, Fang Hong also felt a flicker of excitement.

The reason was simple: no member of the Observatory wanted a pushover for a superior. Shen Bai’s decisive and forceful actions perfectly matched their ideal image of a new Prefecture Chief.

’With Lord Shen’s arrival, maybe things in Nanxing Prefecture are about to change,’ Fang Hong thought.

He didn’t know if he was right or not, but the thought persisted.

At this thought, Fang Hong drew even closer to Shen Bai’s back.

...

The crowd of onlookers only began to disperse once the procession reached the entrance of the Observatory.

The Observatory in Nanxing Prefecture was, naturally, much larger than the one in Fenglin State.

In both decor and sheer size, the one in Fenglin State couldn’t compare.

The most striking feature was the five-story tower in the courtyard.

It was in a class of its own within Nanxing Prefecture.

After Shen Bai led the group to the Observatory’s entrance, Fang Hong, who was guiding them, immediately went forward to announce Shen Bai’s identity to the members on guard duty.

Though Shen Bai’s identity was unquestionable, some formalities still had to be observed.

This was especially true now, given that Shen Bai’s status was no longer what it once was. He was the Prefecture Chief of the Observatory in Nanxing Prefecture.

For someone of such a high station to have to announce himself would be a slap in the face to the entire Observatory.

The two Observatory members immediately cupped their fists and saluted Shen Bai.

Shen Bai waved his sleeve. "Go and inform the heads of the Jia, Yi, Bing, and Ding divisions, as well as the Landlords of the Registration Hall and the Resource Hall, to come see me. We will meet at the top of that five-story tower. That will be my office from now on."

"Yes, sir! Your subordinate obeys!" The Observatory member on the right hurried away.

Shen Bai then followed Fang Hong toward the five-story tower.

As for the members of the Gao Family, they had already been taken to the dungeons.

People were already waiting there, ready to subject them to harsh punishments.

Arriving at the five-story tower, Shen Bai looked up to take it in. "Did the previous Prefecture Chief also have his office here?" he asked.

Fang Hong quickly replied, "That’s correct, Lord Shen. The previous chief also had his office on the fifth floor."

Shen Bai glanced back. "Don’t call him ’chief’ anymore. He’s a traitor, after all. I don’t personally care for such formalities, but if an outsider were to overhear..."

Fang Hong immediately responded, "Understood, Lord Shen. That traitor also had his office on the fifth floor."

He repeated himself, but this time with the corrected term of address.

Shen Bai nodded and proceeded up the stairs to the fifth floor.

The fifth floor was quite spacious and completely empty.

The office was in the largest room on the fifth floor. Shen Bai strode inside, sat down in the central chair, and gazed at the immense desk, tapping his fingers on its surface.

’This doesn’t feel half bad,’ Shen Bai thought.

Power can be intoxicating, especially from a position like Shen Bai’s, which held the authority over life and death.

Yet his only assessment of it was that it was ’not bad’.

For him, so-called power was merely a byproduct of true strength—a luxury, not a necessity.

Fang Hong stood off to the side, not daring to leave since Shen Bai hadn’t dismissed him.