Chapter 78: Harvest

Chapter 78: Harvest

The official night walkers filed inside, naturally splitting into two teams—one responsible for treating the wounded, the other for inspecting the scene, delivering finishing blows, and clearing away any lingering threats.

A female member of the Hundred Flowers Association knelt down to check the two poisoned Fire Mages, her voice changing slightly:

"Centurion, their vital signs are weak. They need to consume diluted Life Primordial Liquid immediately, or their lives will be in danger."

Within the Legal faction, Musicians and Wood Sprites both possessed skills in the life domain, but at the Extraordinary stage, neither profession had the healing capability to bring someone back from the brink of death.

Such powerful skills were only within the grasp of high-stage night walkers.

Therefore, the Musician profession’s "Life Primordial Liquid" had always been a crucial strategic asset for the officials, producing immediate effects on dying patients.

The Five Elements Alliance had to purchase a massive amount of Life Primordial Liquid from the "Three Musician Families" every year, making it exceedingly precious.

Fu Qingyang said in a deep voice, "Administer treatment immediately."

The female Wood Sprite unzipped her tactical backpack, pulled out two injection vials, and administered intravenous shots to the two poisoned Fire Mages.

The severely wounded and unconscious Big Muscle Tyrant enjoyed the same treatment, while Li Dongze was not so fortunate; the Wood Sprite from the Hundred Flowers Association merely gave him simple hemostasis, detoxification, and bandaging.

Qingteng and the others were also treated.

Fu Qingyang walked over to Guanya, took off his coat, draped it over her shoulders, and frowned, asking:

"Are you alright?"

Guanya gathered the collar of the suit jacket and shook her head.

At that moment, the captain-level night walker clearing the battlefield returned with his men to report:

"Centurion, the enemies have all been killed. No survivors left alive."

The captain remarked with emotion:

"All four hex beasts had reached the physical level of a Tier 3 Fire Mage. It is truly incredible that you managed to deal with them without any casualties, but there is one thing I don’t understand. Two of the hex beasts have no wounds on their bodies, their corpses are stiff and cold, and they must have been dead for several hours.

"How did you do it?"

Hearing this, Lingjun raised an eyebrow, immediately moved over to the corpse of "Unbridled Tyranny," and knelt to observe.

Fu Qingyang’s heart stirred, and he looked toward Guanya, asking, "What happened?"

"Those two were killed by Yuanshi," Guanya replied succinctly.

"No, it wasn't two," Bailong, who had received treatment, supplemented as he leaned on his blade, "It was three."

"Yuanshi Tianzun? That newcomer who cleared the S-grade Jinshui Amusement Park? Where is he? I haven't seen what he looks like yet," the young girl bandaging Big Muscle Tyrant raised her head and asked with an excited expression.

Her direct captain used a stern glare to force the young girl's excitement back down.

Three... Fu Qingyang looked at Qingteng and Tang Guoqiang, seeing that they did not dispute it, while those few injured Tier 2 night walkers seemed to recall something, their faces showing a mix of admiration and dread.

"It is

Zhang Yuanqing changed the subject: “She’s really good at reading people.”

Fu Qingyang looked at him with deep eyes.

For some reason, Zhang Yuanqing’s gaze instinctively shied away; he disliked this piercing look that seemed to see through everything.

I hate a scout’s gaze… Zhang Yuanqing muttered discontentedly in his mind. Just as he was about to meet it, Fu Qingyang shifted his gaze to Hengxingwuji’s corpse and asked:

“What is your take on this battle?”

His tone was calm, more like an assessment of a valued subordinate than a mere inquiry.

Thinking that this centurion thought highly of him, Zhang Yuanqing chose his words carefully and replied:

“The enemy knew our deployment and numbers in advance, they knew everything about us. There’s a lot more going on behind the scenes.”

Fu Qingyang said bluntly: “Someone in the official ranks colluded with Hengxingwuji and betrayed you.”

In other words, we have a traitor among us! Zhang Yuanqing nodded.

“That’s why I dismissed everyone; from now on, only you and I know.” Fu Qingyang glanced at the corpse of Hengxingwuji.

Zhang Yuanqing understood his meaning, walked over to the ugly, ferocious corpse, a black viscous substance stirring in his eyes.

The spirit lingering in the husk revived, drifting out in wisps, condensing above the body into a semi-transparent silhouette, baring its teeth at Zhang Yuanqing with extreme ferocity.

“I might go a little mad after devouring the spirit of an evil class…” He took out the Demon-Subduing Pestle and handed it to Fu Qingyang: “This tool can purify mental contamination.”

He had given the Demon-Subduing Pestle to Li Dongze out of trust in his character, but to Fu Qingyang because the man was rich and generous—no, wealthy and open-handed—unlikely to covet his tools.

Fu Qingyang took the tool and nodded slightly.

Without further word, Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath and drew the spirit into his mouth.

…

His brow suddenly swelled as something foreign forcefully flooded into his sea of consciousness.

Countless fragmented images surged forward, flashing by like a lantern slide, all of them vivid memories from Hengxingwuji’s life.

Hengxingwuji came from a poor family, studied hard to change his fate, but after stepping into society, he found that his proud education was of little use. After a few years of work, he discovered that diligent attendance only led to more tasks from his boss, reducing him to a corporate slave.

He couldn’t compete with those who had connections, nor with the flatterers who lacked ability. After ten years of work, he still couldn’t afford a house, yet marriage required owning a home. His father was just an honest farmer, without savings.

Being honest and dutiful offered no hope, but taking shortcuts raked in money.

He didn’t know where his future lay, becoming very lost, until one time he exploited his position to amass a huge fortune. From then on, Hengxingwuji fell from grace and grew to love this risky behavior.

Finally, the scene shifted, and Zhang Yuanqing saw a dark bedroom, saw a female ghost floating by the bed.

“Where is Heiwuchang? Trust is the foundation of cooperation. It seems we don’t trust each other enough yet.”

“You have two options. One, wait for the degenerates on the list to lose control one after another…”

“To show sincerity, I will reveal the official walkers’ deployment and actions.”

…

In the same dark bedroom, Hengxingwuji cut his wrist, letting blood drip into a black wooden bowl inscribed with incantations. The blood in the bowl twisted to form a human face.

“Boss, someone from Dark Rose has come looking for you, wants to meet you.”

“It’s too early to meet now. Playing with fire requires caution… Has their leader come?”

“I don’t know. Boss, seizing the Fallen Grail as soon as possible is the key.”

“Are you telling me what to do?”

“I wouldn’t dare…”

“What else did he say?”

“He said he would provide the official team’s action plan for me to set up an ambush and relieve your pressure.”

“It’s worth a try…”

Dark Rose? Heiwuchang is lurking in Songhai, and the person he’s waiting for is the leader of Dark Rose? What kind of organization is this? They seem to be brewing some big conspiracy. Tsk, the information I got this time is quite substantial…

A golden light flashed, the scene dissipated, and his consciousness returned. Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes to find himself handcuffed to a high-backed chair.

Eh, no pain, no signs of being beaten… Zhang Yuanqing felt a moment of delight, but then thought that this meant Centurion Fu had completely overpowered him, and his joy faded.

Seeing him awake, Fu Qingyang immediately asked:

“What did you gain?”