In the Qiankun Hall of Great Zhou Dynasty, the Dragon Whip is a formidable punishment indeed, each lash striking the flesh deeply. Inside the hall, there’s a special punishment chamber where once you climb onto that punishment bench, regardless of being a Dao Realm expert, not an ounce of spiritual power can be summoned.

One can only rely on the physical body to endure.

The Dragon Whip, woven from the five-colored dragon skins of Ancient Black Dragons, Ancient Golden Dragons, Ancient Silver Dragons, Ancient Red Dragons, and Ancient Green Dragons, can tear and rip open the flesh of even those with high cultivation, no matter how robust their innate spiritual bodies are.

In the punishment chamber of the Qiankun Hall, it is not uncommon for ministers to have their flesh lashed to ashes by the Ancient Five-colored Dragon Whip.

Ming Tang, subjected to a hundred lashes, was whipped half-dead despite his cultivation; his back was exposed with large swathes of pale bones.

Another fifty or so lashes might have reduced his flesh to ashes.

Nevertheless, even while half-dead from the whipping, Ming Tang, in accordance with Great Zhou tradition, was carried from the punishment chamber to the Qiankun Hall, where he stood trembling like a leaf, his blood soon forming a small stream.

This was firstly a tradition in the Qiankun Hall of Great Zhou to serve as a warning to the ministers, and secondly, matters concerning the Heavenly Temple still required Ming Tang’s involvement.

However, not a single drop of blood from Ming Tang managed to stain the robes of the ministers; a slight movement of spiritual power ensured that any blood falling away from Ming Tang would avoid them.

No matter where it flowed, it wouldn’t touch their garments.

As for the pale-faced Ming Tang, trembling uncontrollably, he desperately stuffed life-preserving spiritual medicine into his mouth, the spirit light flickering behind him, the flowing blood gradually lessened, and his breath stabilized.

Yet his expression was fierce, and his occasional glances at Ye Zhen were filled with hatred.

Ming Tang could swear the Dragon Whip he just endured was the worst punishment he had ever suffered in his life, bar none.

And all of this was because of Ye Zhen!

At the same time, Baili Fei, the master of the Moon Palace of Sun and Moon Mountain in the Heavenly Temple, stepped slowly to the center of the hall, pausing the red scepter in his hand slightly.

At the moment the scepter touched the ground, an oppressive authority spread across the court, suffocating the civil and military officials of Great Zhou.

Almost simultaneously, Ren Venerate Emperor Ji Long’s gaze shifted, his palm suddenly grasping the National Guardian Qiankun Seal on the throne.

The crowd felt a breeze pass by, and the suffocating pressure immediately dissipated.

In that instant, everyone bowed their heads, not daring to meet Ren Venerate Emperor Ji Long’s gaze due to the overwhelming imperial might.

Except for Baili Fei, the master of the Moon Palace holding the red scepter, and Prime Minister Bai, the Chief Sun Priest of the Ancestor God Temple holding the Great Sun Scepter.

Baili Fei, clutching the red scepter, held his head high, as if the pervasive imperial might in the Qiankun Hall had nothing to do with him, or as though he was outside the Qiankun Hall in another realm entirely, seemingly unaffected.

This was a demonstration of defiance!

"Your Majesty, I am here under the Sun and Moon Divine Monarch’s decree, requesting the handover of the murderer who slaughtered ten thousand temple members at our Shahe City Branch Temple, Ye Zhen the Third-class Earl of North Sea, and ask Your Majesty to facilitate this!" Finishing his statement, Baili Fei pressed the red scepter heavily again.

The red scepter, or the Staff of World Incineration, is one of the tokens of the Sun and Moon Divine Monarch of Sun and Moon Mountain in the Heavenly Temple. Holding the Staff of World Incineration is akin to the Sun and Moon Divine Monarch’s presence.

With Baili Fei’s heavy tap, an awe-inspiring divine force spread out from the Staff of World Incineration, like a shockwave, it spread in all directions.

At that instant, several ministers closest to the Staff of World Incineration inexplicably felt their knees weaken, instinctively wanting to kneel before it.

On seeing this, Prime Minister Bai snorted coldly, the Great Sun Scepter in his hand also stamped heavily.

An aura similar to that of the Staff of World Incineration surged forth towards the Staff of World Incineration.

In the center of the Qiankun Hall, a small whirlwind suddenly whipped up, dispersing the oppressive forces of both the Staff of World Incineration and the Great Sun Scepter simultaneously.

The atmosphere within the hall abruptly returned to calm.

"Baili, you old bald donkey, if you’re itching for a fight, I’ll gladly have a battle with you in the Outer Heaven to ease your discomfort. Flaunting that thing which can be ridden by others—is it not enough to be trampled?" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Prime Minister Bai opened his mouth with a rogue tone, directly stunning Ye Zhen.

Are all the folks at the Ancestor God Temple like this?

More than that, as Prime Minister Bai spoke, the Great Sun Scepter in his hand mimicked a man, subtly raising its lower body, appearing incredibly vulgar.

Baili Fei instantly turned furious, "You decrepit old thing, how dare you blaspheme against the Divine Monarch’s power?"

"What are you talking about?" Bai Xiang adopted a serious expression, "The thing in your hand, ten million years ago, was slept with by the thing in my hand for thousands of years.

Now, a reunion of old flames, exuberant passion is unavoidable, what’s the surprise in that? Oh right, the thing in your hand likely misses the thing in mine too?

How about we let them reunite a bit, grant them some time so the thing in my hand could sleep with the thing in yours again? How does that sound?"

Hahaha!

In an instant, within the Qiankun Hall, regardless of whichever side the ministers of Great Zhou leaned towards, laughter erupted across the chamber.

Especially the ministers siding with the Heavenly Temple, they wished to laugh but could not restrain themselves, resembling Prince Ji Yuan at this moment whose face turned beet red.

Ye Zhen was utterly astonished, could this be more rogue?

Yet Ye Zhen liked it!

Though, it seems the topic has veered off quite a bit!

The matter of Ye Zhen’s condemnation, how did it turn into a contest of the two great scepters after the Chief Sun Priest spoke?

Yu Chaoen’s Divine Soul telecommunication echoed in Ye Zhen’s Spirit Palace. Yu Chaoen might be one of the few in the Qiankun Hall capable of using Divine Soul telecommunication.

Seeing Ye Zhen’s confusion, Yu Chaoen briefly explained the origins of this anecdote to Ye Zhen.

The Staff of World Incineration of the Sun and Moon Divine Monarch and the Great Sun Scepter of the Ancestor God Temple once originated from a pair of ancient demons ten thousand years ago.

Both factions coveted this pair of ancient demons simultaneously, a fierce battle ensued, and each captured one, coincidentally refining them into scepters.

It turned out that this pair of ancient demons were once lovers, and the male was seized by the Ancestor God Temple while the female by the Heavenly Temple.

Thus, the origin of this tale.

Of course, these scepters rarely encounter each other, so these interactions are infrequent, occurring maybe once in ten or twenty thousand years.

This time around, it was a fortunate coincidence, and Prime Minister Bai seized the opportunity to irk the others.

Holding the Divine Monarch’s scepter and experiencing such an incident, feeling insulted, and perceiving the Sun and Moon Divine Monarch’s dignity trampled, Baili Fei from the Moon Palace was ready to retaliate with his scepter.

At this moment, Zhen Yan, the master of the Thunder Hall at Thunder Prison Mountain in Heavenly Temple, lightly coughed.

Though it was just a light cough, it resonated like thunder momentarily awakening the outraged Baili Fei.

"Business is paramount!" Thunder Hall Master Zhen Yan only uttered these four words.

Baili Fei’s back was drenched in cold sweat; he was nearly led astray by Bai Xiang, the old fool, and missed the pressing matters!