Chapter 002: The Court's Attention

Chang'an, Imperial Palace, within the Imperial Study.

The Emperor of the Great Tang sat on the dragon throne, his expression stern as he looked at the minister standing before him, and asked in a low voice: "Minister Fang, how is the investigation I entrusted to you progressing?"

The man standing before Emperor Taizong wore a purple official robe, his face gaunt and advanced in years, but his voice was full of vigor: "In reply to Your Majesty, this old minister has found that this merchant named Wang Bo has neither tea houses nor taverns, nor money shops nor brothels within our Great Tang. I have not discovered any business he operates in the Tang."

"However, according to my investigation, this merchant entered Chang'an not long ago. First, he spent fifty thousand strings of cash to purchase a mansion in the West Market, then he widely befriended demon hunters. Whenever a demon hunter visited, he would surely offer fine wine and delicacies, spending lavishly every day."

"When the demon hunters departed, this merchant would also gift them gold and silver ranging from one hundred to five hundred taels."

"As of now, this merchant has already spent hundreds of thousands of strings of cash. He is extremely wealthy and quite alarming."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Taizong of Tang involuntarily raised an eyebrow. His Great Tang was now prosperous and its people strong, yet the annual tax revenue was merely tens of millions of strings of cash.

Yet this merchant, with no substantial assets, could casually produce hundreds of thousands of strings of cash, and from his demeanor, he showed no sign of reluctance to part with the money.

From this, it was evident that this mysterious merchant must possess astonishing wealth.

Perhaps his riches could rival those of a nation.

"Minister Fang, have you uncovered the origins of this merchant?" Emperor Taizong asked.

Fang Xuanling replied helplessly, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have not been able to trace the merchant's origins, but I suspect he may not be a subject of our Great Tang."

Emperor Taizong's expression darkened. He knew Fang Xuanling well; although the minister had used the vague term 'may not be,' his chancellor was not one to make baseless accusations.

"If we cannot trace his origins within the Great Tang, it seems, as you say, that this man is likely not a subject of our Great Tang. Then what is his purpose in coming to our Great Tang and befriending exorcists?"

Fang Xuanling hesitated for a moment, then clasped his hands and said, "Well, this old minister is not quite clear either."

Emperor Taizong of Tang's face grew even darker.

To be honest, his feelings toward the exorcists were very complex—filled with both reverence and intense anger.

The reverence was due to the exorcists' strength.

Although the exorcists were a mixed lot, there were no lack of powerful individuals among them.

However, the anger was also because of their formidable abilities.

As the saying goes, scholars disrupt the law with their words, and martial artists defy prohibitions with their武力.

These powerful exorcists, each with a distinct personality, relying on their skills, defied the law, acted without restraint, and it was common to see them kill for treasure. Some cruel exorcists even sacrificed human blood to demons, committing all kinds of evil, straying into the demonic path.

Sometimes, he wished he could wipe out all these exorcists.

But helplessly, his Great Tang could not do without these exorcists.

Demons and monsters were powerful; if ordinary soldiers were sent to suppress them, it would be a sheer waste of lives. An ordinary demon could easily kill hundreds of soldiers.

If it were a powerful demon, it could match tens of thousands of troops.

No matter how prosperous his Great Tang was, it dared not sacrifice tens of thousands of soldiers to wear down a single demon.

So at such times, what he needed were the exorcists.

Only exorcists could fight against these man-eating demons.

But the problem returned: some exorcists were powerful, unruly, and lawless, and certain radical exorcists caused no less slaughter than demons.

This made his feelings toward exorcists extremely complicated. He wanted them gone, yet he needed them to fight demons.

This sense of helplessness made him, an emperor, feel deeply frustrated.

In the past, he had thought of recruiting a group of exorcists to make them abide by the laws of the Great Tang and serve him.

But the problem was that most exorcists who came under his command were ordinary in skill; truly powerful exorcists simply did not buy into the court's system.

They acted as they pleased, unwilling to put a chain on their heads and lock away their freedom.

Thus, although the court had established a Demon Suppression Bureau, its strength was negligible compared to the exorcists of the world, and the court still had no way to deal with exorcists.

However, after years of study, the court gradually figured out the nature of exorcists and learned how to get along with them.

And that method was laissez-faire and exploitation.

The court acknowledged the existence of exorcists, allowing them to act chivalrously and slay demons. If an exorcist turned to evil and committed many crimes, the court would issue a bounty.

Thus, naturally, a group of exorcists would act on behalf of heaven.

Of course, whether they were truly acting for heaven, Emperor Taizong did not know, but after this method was implemented, the scoundrels among exorcists decreased significantly.

At least exorcists no longer acted as recklessly as before.

But today, a mysterious merchant, at the foot of Chang'an city, spent lavishly every day and made extensive connections with exorcists. Who was he, and what did he want?

Emperor Taizong could not help but suspect there might be some conspiracy.

It was not that he was too suspicious, mainly because exorcists were too sensitive in the eyes of the court.

Especially among the exorcists this merchant befriended, many bore more than one murder case and had defied the law not just once or twice.

Thinking of this, Emperor Taizong immediately made a decision: "Minister Fang."

"Your old servant is here."

"I order you to immediately investigate the identity and purpose of this mysterious merchant. When necessary, I allow you to mobilize all forces of the Demon Suppression Bureau. Minister Fang, do not disappoint my expectations."

Fang Xuanling said, "Your old servant obeys!!!"

…

Meanwhile, within the Wang residence in the Western Market of Chang'an.

Wang Bo did not know that his actions of extensively befriending exorcists had already caught the court's attention. At this moment, he was hosting a banquet for several newly arrived exorcists.

These exorcists claimed to be Taoist priests who had cultivated on Kunlun Mountain, recently sent down the mountain to gain experience by their master's order. Unfortunately, during a demon-slaying process, they accidentally harmed innocents.

Helpless, they had to spend most of their travel money to heal and save people.

Leaving only a small portion for daily expenses, by the time they reached Chang'an, they were penniless.

Just then, the Taoists heard that there was a great benefactor in Chang'an who was public-spirited and made extensive connections with exorcists, so they shamelessly came to bother him.

Upon hearing this, Wang Bo could not help but laugh and quickly invited the Taoists in, hosting a banquet.

As for whether these Taoists were lying, Wang Bo thought it unlikely.

Because he found that these Taoists indeed possessed magical power.