128: Chapter 128 The Former Immortal Venerable Sentenced to Life Imprisonment, Yet He Can Still Create the Rhythm of the Great Dao Even While Stepping on a Sewing Machine

At the Yanjing City First Intermediate People's Court, the solemn national emblem hung high.

In the defendant's seat, Xiao Aotian had been given a clean buzz cut. The cloud-patterned white robe he had used to show off was long gone, replaced by an orange detention center vest. His wrists and ankles were adorned with specially made Spirit-Suppressing shackles, and he slumped in his chair as if his spine had been pulled out.

The presiding judge had been reading from above for a full two hours.

The three-hundred-page indictment felt like the epitaph of this "Old Ancestor Aotian's" life.

"Defendant Xiao Aotian, you have violated the Land Administration Law by illegally occupying 1,200 mu of forest land in the core area of the Qinling Nature Reserve, severely damaging the ecological environment..."

"You have violated Article 240 of the Criminal Law by abducting and detaining forty-eight minors under the guise of taking disciples..."

"You have violated the Law on Penalties for Administration of Public Security by organizing illegal assemblies, promoting feudal superstition, and disrupting public order..."

"You have violated the Civil Aviation Law by repeatedly flying illegally in controlled airspace and causing light and noise pollution in the city center..."

Each charge read out was like an invisible slap across the face that Xiao Aotian once held so arrogantly.

The public gallery was packed with the parents of the victimized children, as well as representatives from the Forestry Bureau, the Education Bureau, and the Urban Management Bureau. With every charge read, an irrepressible cheer erupted from below.

Xiao Aotian stared blankly at the ceiling.

A few months ago, that damned System was still feeding him pipe dreams in his head: [Host, this System will assist you in establishing a Supreme Immortal Court, making this world bow at your feet.]

And the result?

Before even passing the "first barrier," he was pinned to the ground and rubbed into the dirt by a civil servant who drank goji berry tea every day.

In this world, the so-called "Heaven-Defying" path simply results in being forced by the prosecution to learn the Law.

"In summary, you are sentenced for multiple crimes."

The presiding judge's voice suddenly rose, and the gavel in his hand fell heavily.

"The defendant Xiao Aotian is sentenced to life imprisonment, deprived of political rights for life, ordered to forfeit all personal illegal gains, and fined 350 million RMB for ecological restoration!"

Thud! With a sharp sound, the dust settled.

Xiao Aotian shuddered, as if waking from a dream.

Life imprisonment.

His life was over.

Two bailiffs stepped forward, one on each side, and grabbed his arms.

While passing the plaintiff's table, Xiao Aotian suddenly stopped and stared fixedly at the tall, upright back of the man packing up his documents.

"Gu Changan." Xiao Aotian's voice was hoarse, filled with a confusion he couldn't fathom.

Gu Changan stopped his movements, turned to the side, his expression calm.

"My System has deduced countless possibilities, I even accounted for nuclear bombs... Why couldn't I calculate your fate?" Xiao Aotian's eyes were bloodshot. "Who exactly are you? Which ancient powerhouse are you a Reincarnation of?"

Gu Changan straightened his slightly wrinkled cuffs and tucked his fountain pen into his jacket pocket.

He looked at Xiao Aotian, his eyes devoid of mockery, holding only a business-like indifference.

"Read less Xuanhuan novels and watch more news broadcasts."

Gu Changan pointed to the national emblem above.

"I am just an ordinary department-level cadre. You couldn't calculate me because standing behind me are 1.4 billion people, and a state apparatus that has been running for over seventy years."

"Your so-called Heaven-Defying fate-changing is simply you pitting yourself against the order of this country, against the torrent of the entire era."

"Xiao Aotian, no matter how strong an individual's Luck is, in the face of national destiny, it's not worth a fart."

Having said that, Gu Changan picked up his briefcase and strode out of the courtroom.

Xiao Aotian stood dazed, and it wasn't until he was forcibly dragged away by the bailiffs that he let out a shrill, miserable laugh.

Yanjing City Third Prison, also known as the "Special Criminal Rehabilitation Center."

The people imprisoned here were not ordinary murderers or arsonists, but ruthless individuals from all walks of life who possessed unique skills and had once thought themselves to be the protagonists of the world.

When Xiao Aotian was pushed into the cell, it was bustling inside.

A one-eyed man with a limp was squatting by the toilet scrubbing the bowl; that was Qin Yan, who once possessed the "Golden Eyes."

By the window, a man with a sinister face was gesturing with silver needles at the air, muttering to himself; that was the Divine Doctor Lin Chen, who had been stripped of his medical skills.

And in the corner, a burly man was lying on the ground doing push-ups, counting as he did them; that was none other than the Ye Fan, Ye Fan.

Seeing the new cellmate, the group simultaneously looked up.

"Yo, another newcomer?" Ye Fan wiped his sweat and grinned. "Looks like Gu the King of Hell has been having a good run lately."

Xiao Aotian looked at this group of big shots who had once dominated the world, but were now reduced to wearing prison uniforms and sitting in cells; the last shred of his arrogance completely shattered.

This was the graveyard of protagonists.

"Don't just stand there." The prison guard threw in a set of bedding and a washbasin.

"You'll be living here from now on. By the way, labor reform starts at 2:00 PM. You've been assigned to Sewing Group One, which specializes in producing disaster relief tents."

Xiao Aotian was stunned: "I am an Immortal Venerable... You want me to pedal a sewing machine?"

"Less talk!" Ye Fan walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "Brother, accept your fate. I used to be a Dragon King, with one hundred thousand soldiers under my command, and now don't I have to honestly stitch shoe soles? Last month, I even won the mobile red flag for stitching the fastest."

"..."

In the afternoon, the workshop. A huge roaring sound filled his eardrums. Hundreds of fully automatic sewing machines were running at high speed.

Xiao Aotian sat at his workstation, looking at the thick canvas and the tiny machine needle in front of him, his mind completely blank.

"Step on the pedal, hold the fabric with your hands, and sew in a straight line." The supervising officer coldly demonstrated once. "Today's quota is one hundred pieces. If you don't finish, you don't eat."

Xiao Aotian gritted his teeth and tentatively pressed the pedal. Da da da da da!

The machine started instantly, and the piece of canvas flew out as if it had a life of its own, the stitches crooked like a dead snake.

"Are you a pig!" Divine Doctor Lin Chen in the next station cursed. "Use some finesse! Apply that micro-control you used for Spiritual Qi to your hands!"

Xiao Aotian was angered by the scolding, but the hunger in his stomach forced him to lower his head.

He took a deep breath, attempting to mobilize the last trace of weak Qi sensation within his body. Although his cultivation base had been crippled, the foundation of his Meridians remained.

He closed his eyes and imagined this sewing machine as his own Lifebound Treasure. Man and machine as one.

Da da da da da... This time, the rhythm of the pedal changed.

It was no longer chaotic noise, but a rhythmic vibration.

Xiao Aotian's feet felt as if they were stepping on the Laws of the Dao, with every press being incredibly precise. The canvas in his hands slid past the needle like flowing water, leaving behind a line of stitches so straight it was hair-raising.

That long-lost sense of control had returned. Even if it was just pedaling a sewing machine.

"Holy crap?" Ye Fan next to him was dumbfounded. "Did he actually apply the 'Shrinking Earth into Inches' movement technique to the pedal?"

In just two short hours, the finished products at Xiao Aotian's feet had piled up into a small mountain.

Because the Physique of a Cultivator far exceeded that of ordinary people, his hand speed was so fast it created afterimages, and he had almost made the sewing machine smoke.

At this moment, Xiao Aotian looked at the pile of neat tents and actually felt a strange sense of accomplishment.

He was only a third-rate Sect Master in the Immortal Realm; he never expected that in this world, he would be a peerless Genius at pedaling a sewing machine.

Just as he was immersed in this "rhythm of the Dao," the workshop door was pushed open.