The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

Since using up the tribute to get accurate shooting ability, the Eye of Desire hadn’t had any reaction no matter how Gu Liang fiddled with it, and all the wishes he brought up went on deaf ears.

This made him suspect that it was due to insufficient offers as tribute, but he was totally clueless on how to gain tribute. He tried doing some good deeds and also burned incense as offerings, but never heard any confirmation from the God of Storms and Natural Disasters. He got more and more anxious, just having a treasure but not able to use it was the worst feeling!

Now, the God of Storms and Natural Disasters had initiated a request. How could he let go of this fleeting opportunity?

With this thought, Gu Liang swallowed the words of his plan to resign, took in a light breath and said, “Officer, what can I do?”

The man in the black coat said, “I’m Zhang Shouque, Chief police officer of the Special Operations Division, directly in charge of seven operations units. For now, you will follow the First Operations Unit’s stay-behind team to analyze the collected information and find clues for follow-up investigations, understand?”

“Yes, Officer Zhang,” Gu Liang held his hand to salute, feeling astonished.

The man in front is actually the Chief police officer!

The Far East Police Department fully inherited the structure of Scotland Yard. The Police Commissioner was responsible for all matters, and below him were Deputy Commissioners and Assistant Commissioners which had a total of four people, called the Big Four for short. They were respectively in charge of the four major departments – the patrol department, the criminal department, the local affairs department, and the administrative support department, and were supported by a series of chief police officers. The Chief Police Officer Committee formed by the chief police officers, the Big Four, and the Police Commissioners was the highest decision-making body.

After Gu Liang knew about the Special Operations Division and understood that it was directly affiliated with the Chief Police Committee, he had thought about its distinctiveness but had never expected it to be almost of the same level as the four major departments, and the officer in charge was actually a chief police officer.

The Special Operations Division must have great authority… he thought spontaneously.

Zhang Shouque took out an epaulette and passed it to Gu Liang, “This is your official police officer symbol, don’t lose it.”

The biggest difference between an official police officer and a trainee police officer was changing the armband to an epaulette, which still had a sword symbol and the police officer’s serial number but didn’t have the name anymore.

“Serial number 9527…” Gu Liang took the epaulette and took a glance at the serial number before strangely noticing that he had three sword symbols!

“She…sheriff!” he got a shock.

This is a sheriff’s epaulette!

He hadn’t even reached a senior police officer with two sword symbols but directly became a sheriff?

Is there a mistake?

Zhang Shouque said indifferently, “In the Special Operations Division, the lowest rank is at least a sheriff.”

While talking, he took out an armband and put it on himself. On it were a serial number and a scepter symbol with a laurel wreath around it, representing a chief police officer.

He looks less than forty, which is just over ten years older than me, and is already a chief police officer. I still have Inspector, Senior Inspector, Chief Inspector, Superintendent, Senior Superintendent, Chief Superintendent, six ranks to climb… with this thinking, Gu Liang felt that his rank as a sheriff wasn’t exactly unbelievable and accepted it with ease.

Sigh, Sheriff Huang is forty plus this year and only got to the title of sheriff after struggling in New Scotland Yard for almost twenty years. I’ve just turned official and am already the same rank as him, comparisons are really odious. Gu Liang lamented inside him. All this is because of his extraordinary shooting ability, and his extraordinary shooting ability came from the Eye of Desire, which was the celestial item of the God of Storm and Natural Disasters.

The power of god is really extraordinary and his kindness is boundless! Gu Liang decided to convert to a believer of the God of Storm and Natural Disasters from today onwards.

To mortals, a little bit of a gift from the gods could make a tremendous change to their lives and gradually get to the peak, just like himself.

A sheriff’s salary was at least eighty silver dollars, which was enough for him to change to a better place to stay and even get a helper for cleaning!

Zhang Shouque turned and passed through a room with anti-Buddhism flag hanging before entering the conference room at the side. Seated inside were over ten men and women wearing armbands of Inspector, Senior Inspector, and Chief Inspector, and even two Superintendents and a Senior Superintendent. They were systematically looking at the information in front of them, recording and circulating among themselves. There were people asking questions from time to time and there would be a new round of searching. The atmosphere was quiet and orderly but uptight and busy.

After Zhang Shouque clapped and got everyone’s attention, he pointed at Gu Liang and said, “This is Gu Liang, this year’s newbie, an expert in shooting. Everyone please look after him and don’t scare him.”

Why does this sound a little weird… Gu Liang suddenly thought of this and instinctively held the Eye of Desires that was disguised as a ring tightly as he silently prayed for blessings from the God of Storms and Natural Disasters.

A woman wearing a Chief Inspector armband stood up. She had straight shoulder-length hair and was wearing a waisted purple skirt, looking matured and charming. She smiled and said, “Don’t be nervous, Brother Gu. We’re already very experienced in helping newbies get through this transition period and wouldn’t have so many cases of entering the asylum like before. Of course, life is unpredictable for people in our line, you have to be mentally prepared.”

Asylum cases? Life is unpredictable? Gu Liang gasped, feeling even more nervous. Luckily he had the protection of the God of Storm and Natural Disasters!

“Lin Tong, don’t scare him. Take him to collect his equipment and assign information to him,” Zhang Shouque let out a rare smile, turned around and left.

“You have some guts,” Lin Tong left her original place, walked to the front of Gu Liang and complimented smilingly. “If you can’t even take those words, it’d be better for your to transfer to the criminal department. The cases here are always bloody, strange and horrifying.”

If I couldn’t gain tributes and realize wishes, I would still think that the criminal department is better… Gu Liang forced a smile as he followed Lin Tong’s sashaying body to the Special Operations Division Equipment Department next door.

“This is your weapon,” Lin Tong chatted with the person in charge before taking out a briefcase. Inside was a brand new revolver, but its surface was engraved with many spiritual-looking runes, and the same went for the silver bullet!

Seeing Gu Liang looking confused and curious, Lin Tong smiled, “The Holy Spirit Revolver, it can deal with souls with grievances, devils and evil spirits, etc. It suits your expertise perfectly.”

“Use them to investigate cases of spirituality and cults?” Gu Liang took them and equipped himself with familiarity.

Lin Tong smiled, “Members of the Special Operations Division are either gifted and became members of the spiritual society or are real celestial officers from the major celestial halls. Only a small minority is like you who needs to rely on special weapons.”

Major celestial halls? The God of Sun, the God of Knowledge, the God of Protection, the God of War, and the God of Spirituality etc who had segmented the power of god after his falling? Gu Liang came to a sudden realization.

He was the one and only celestial officer of the God of Storms and Natural Disasters!

After returning to the conference room, Gu Liang received a thick stack of information and starting reading them, recording down the important points and unusual areas.

After a day of hard work, he finally understood the ins and outs of this cult case.

First there were a series of suicide and murder cases in other provinces of the Far East region. The victims were all full of smiles, and their bodies were incomplete and had symbols of the Anti-Buddhist Sect. As such, the Special Operations team of the local police reported the matter to New Scotland Yard and got some attention. After preliminary investigations, a few Anti-Buddhist Sect members were targeted, but only one had been captured successfully. The remaining ones had either escaped or self-destructed.

From the captured member, the Special Operations Division knew about the Buddha’s Palm and the moustached man who reverse-practiced the Buddha’s Palm. They knew that he could be the one who destroyed the Far East civilization and both the Taoist and Buddhist organizations. As such, the case was being put to unprecedented importance – they must stop the resurrection of this demon god!

Gu Liang’s job now was to analyze the information collected by the other operations teams and investigate the Anti-Buddhist Sect or the interpersonal relationships of the victims in order to find clues. It was highly pressurizing and extremely dry.

However, Gu Liang felt energetic instead. This was because he noticed that the core of the Eye of Desire got deeper with the increase of the reading materials, which meant that the tribute had started accumulating and was increasing.

Late at night, after the members of the stay-behind team found their own places for a short break, Gu Liang used the excuse of going home to settle some things to sneak out of the New Scotland Yard.

On the way home, he took out the Eye of Desire and his expression turned solemn, “The almighty God of Storms and Natural Disasters, your devout believer requests for a wish to be realized.”

A low thunderous voice sounded, “You have accumulated offers as tribute, speak your desire.”

“I want to have extraordinary powers like the other celestial officers,” Gu Liang said agitatedly and was full of anticipation.

“Your tribute is insufficient and unable to realize…” the thunderous voice was emotionless.

Gu Liang was dumbstruck. How would he know whether the tribute was enough, he didn’t have a measuring scale…

This is an unfair transaction!

Not daring to question the God of Storms and Natural Disasters, he pondered for a while and said, “Extraordinary powers that can be obtained with my current tribute.”

“Your tribute is used up, and your desire is realized,” silverish purple currents burst from the eye-like badge and entered Gu Liang’s body, making him numb all over again. Then, he felt something enter and opened mysterious parts that corresponded to his eyes and nose, etc. There seemed to be a world inside his body that corresponded to the outside world, looking vaguely like a galaxy.

His ears, vision, and smell were no longer the same. Feeling great zenness, Gu Liang revelled in his senses, only thinking of his question after a long while, “The great God of Storms and Natural Disasters, what extraordinary power is this?”

“This is a fast-tracked Little Universe of Virgo,” the thunderous voice was without any smile.

Little Universe of Virgo? What is it? Gu Liang was bewildered.

One more question, I am a Capricorn!