Chapter 21
The Celestial Feather Ministry was located in the southeast corner of the Heavenly Mechanism Department’s complex.
Feng Chiyue left early that day, deliberately taking a detour past the heavenly gates. Seeing her former colleagues’ ashen faces brought a smile to her lips as she drove her chariot towards the Celestial Feather Ministry. The main office of the Heavenly Mechanism Department was mostly staffed by humans, but the Celestial Feather Ministry was different. Hardly any humans could be found there. It was filled with members of the feathered race: Vermilion Birds, Golden Pheasants, Swan Geese, Bifangs… They bowed to her reluctantly, their faces grim. Feng Chiyue didn’t care about their true feelings. Seeing their displeasure brought her joy.
It turned out that watching others seethe with resentment was quite satisfying.
Second only to being with Ming Jian Su.
Upon entering the main hall of the Celestial Feather Ministry, Feng Chiyue saw Bi Feng sitting at the head of the table, dealing with documents. He didn’t even look up. Immortals had sharp senses. Unless someone deliberately concealed their presence, how could he not sense her arrival? He was doing this on purpose, trying to intimidate her. His mind wasn’t on the documents. He was secretly wondering how long it would take for Feng Chiyue to lose her temper.
But after a long silence, he still hadn’t heard anything. He frowned, about to look up, when a sharp “crash” echoed from outside the hall. It wasn’t Feng Chiyue’s voice. Was she throwing a tantrum outside? He waited, expecting the commotion to escalate, but instead, an eerie silence fell. After a quarter of an hour, Bi Feng couldn’t hold back any longer. He stood up and walked outside.
There was nothing unusual.
But the expressions on the faces of the immortal attendants were strange.
Bi Feng followed their gazes and looked up. The large plaque above the main hall was gone! He questioned them and learned that Feng Chiyue had taken it down! Stunned, he rushed towards the direction they pointed. He found the plaque, with the three characters “Celestial Feather Hall” written in bold calligraphy, hanging above the side hall. As for the original plaque of the side hall, it lay abandoned on the ground.
Bi Feng: “…” He had imagined all sorts of scenarios, but this was beyond anything he had anticipated. He took a deep breath, suppressing his boiling rage, and strode into the hall. The first thing he saw was a gleaming sword resting on the head table! Its tip was carefully dipped in ink, swiftly writing on the documents. The resentment emanating from the sword transformed into sharp sword intent that filled the hall, shaking the surrounding formations. Bi Feng had no doubt that if he took another step forward, he would be pierced through the heart. He discreetly retracted his foot and followed the sound of laughter to Feng Chiyue’s couch.
She was reclining on the couch, playing with the Chaos Mirror. She seemed to be watching something amusing, laughing heartily. Bi Feng suddenly felt like he should bring her a plate of fruits and melon seeds.
“Minister!” he finally snapped.
“Is something the matter?” Feng Chiyue frowned, interrupted from her entertainment. She glared at Bi Feng, her expression annoyed. Undefeated on the table hummed in response, its cold light flashing like snow. The single sword hum triggered a chorus of responses from the sword intent within the hall. It wasn’t just one sword. It felt like thousands upon thousands of swords, swirling like a meteor shower. Bi Feng, chilled to the bone, quickly withdrew his hand from the doorframe. He didn’t want to lose a finger!
“You’ve just taken office, Minister. You might not be familiar with the affairs of the Celestial Feather Ministry. Would you like me to give you a tour?”
In Feng Chiyue’s mind, his words translated to two simple words: “Work.”
“No, thank you,” she refused curtly. She glanced at Undefeated and said, “These documents were given to me by the attendants. I’ve already reviewed them. You can take them back and stamp them.”
Bi Feng: “…” Reviewed by her? Did she think he was blind? It was clearly the sword that had reviewed them. But how had the East Abode Master trained her sword? Why could it do her work for her? Before he could ponder further, a stack of documents flew towards him like snowflakes. He hastily reached out and gathered them in his arms. It wasn’t until he returned to his own quarters that he remembered the plaque incident. And Feng Chiyue hadn’t mentioned the Minister’s seal. The excuses he had prepared were useless.
“Junior Minister, what should we do?” an attendant asked anxiously.
Bi Feng didn’t answer. He sighed and took out the Minister’s seal. He opened a document and saw that there were no written comments, only check marks or crosses. Because Undefeated had handled them, the documents were imbued with sharp sword intent. Bi Feng was dissatisfied with Feng Chiyue’s decisions. All the personnel changes from Danxue Mountain had been rejected. Was she deliberately opposing them? He couldn’t stamp and issue these documents. He closed the file with a frown.
Suddenly, the sword intent within the document surged, transforming into a blinding sword light that shot towards his face. Even with his quick reflexes, a long, thin cut appeared on his cheek. His pent-up anger exploded. He jumped to his feet and roared, “Feng Chiyue!”
A timid knock came from the door. Another attendant entered cautiously, bowed to Bi Feng, and stammered, “T-The Minister asked me to inform you, J-Junior Minister, that the M-Minister’s seal can suppress the sword intent.”
The implication was clear. Every document was imbued with sword intent. If he didn’t stamp them, the sword intent would lash out. Did Feng Chiyue think this would make him submit? Bi Feng chuckled coldly, wiping the blood from his cheek and bringing it to his lips. He pointed at the attendant. “Come here,” he said, his voice menacing.
The attendant shuffled forward nervously and, under Bi Feng’s orders, opened and closed a document. The sword intent within surged, filling the hall and rushing towards Bi Feng! As long as a single trace of sword intent remained in the document, every time it was opened and closed, it would activate, targeting him specifically! Bi Feng’s face darkened as he realized this.
Who could have imagined that Feng Chiyue would use such a method against him?
Fine, he would just ignore the documents! Did she think she could control him like this?
Bi Feng enjoyed his freedom for less than two days before Feng Chiyue showed up at his door.
Her expression was calm, her demeanor regal and elegant.
“I heard you haven’t issued any documents these past two days. What’s the matter? Are you getting old and forgetful? If you can’t handle the workload, we can find a younger official to replace you.”
“I thought you were experienced and capable, but it seems you’re just another incompetent fool, wasting your position and disappointing my expectations. How disappointing.”
Bi Feng’s ears buzzed, his vision blurring. He felt like he truly was an incompetent and useless immortal.
It wasn’t until the clear, articulate scolding ended that he snapped out of it.
Wait a minute, what right did Feng Chiyue have to criticize him?!
How had he been swayed by her words? Her tone was different from before. Could she be using the Phoenixes’ “Virtuous Sound” technique? Impossible. The Phoenix lineage rarely mastered this royal technique, and someone as wicked as Feng Chiyue couldn’t possibly use “Virtuous Sound.”
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