Chapter 83: Infiltration

Chapter 83: Infiltration

"Him?"

Wang Qian frowned, hesitating. "We don't have much of a connection; I don't really trust him. Boss, you don't know, the day after the conflict between the Xiahou family and the Palace Master, he sent a message saying he wanted to help me. It was very suspicious..."

Their acquaintance was superficial, and Wang Qian didn't believe that Yuanshi Tianzun would offend the Xiahou family for his sake. Where was the benefit?

Hearing this, the Great Sage of Love hesitated.

The hot girl nearby glanced at Wang Qian, then at the Great Sage of Love, and asked with interest:

"Are you talking about that newcomer who cleared two S-ranks, the one who's been all the rage on the official forum lately?"

Wang Qian nodded. "I'm his informant."

Wo Xing Wo Su scrutinized him, clucking his tongue.

The Great Sage of Love seized the opportunity to ask, "Su Su, what do you think?"

Wo Xing Wo Su shook his head. "I'm very interested in this kind of genius little boy, but I don't know him."

The Great Sage of Love pondered for a few seconds, then voiced his thoughts:

"Yuanshi Tianzun isn't old, and he's a rookie. Spirit Realm Walkers of that age still have a fire in them; they can't stand the strong bullying the weak. Saint Hand, send him a message about this. Just say your sister was kidnapped and you suspect the Xiahou family did it. Don't go into too much detail."

"See how he replies."

Wang Qian nodded. "So, should I step out again?"

The Great Sage of Love shook his head. "Send it right here. We're about to change locations anyway; we'll leave as soon as you're done."

The young man with headphones and the hot girl came over. Under the gaze of his companions, Wang Qian took out his phone and typed a message:

"My sister was kidnapped by the Xiahou family. The Xiahou family doesn't play by the rules; they went after my family. The authorities really won't do anything?"

He finished editing the message and glanced at his companions.

The Great Sage of Love shook his head. "Young geniuses are generally proud; they respond to softness, not hardness. Make the wording gentler. Change it to: My sister was kidnapped by the Xiahou family. She's just an ordinary person. Please help me, save her."

Wang Qian immediately revised the message and sent it.

...

Zhang Yuanqing finally got rid of Xie Lingxi, who had been going on and on about "Did big brother get hurt?" and "Xiahou Tianyuan is a bastard." As soon as he hung up, he received a message notification.

"Wang Qian finally messaged me?" He was delighted, thinking, My disguise ring can finally be put to use.

Then he realized the message was sent to "Yuanshi Tianzun," not the unregistered number.

Zhang Yuanqing read the message once, and his face darkened instantly.

Kidnapping his family?

The Xiahou family actually laid hands on Wang Qian's family, not even sparing ordinary people?

How is this any different from an evil profession... He put his phone away and left the restroom.

Guan Ya, sitting in front of the computer, looked up, glanced at him, and said with a smile:

"Not even ten minutes in; I now have a profound and clear understanding of your endurance... What's wrong?"

She suddenly noticed Yuanshi's grim expression.

Zhang Yuanqing said in a low voice, "Wang Qian's sister was kidnapped..."

He quietly relayed the contents of the message to Guan Ya.

The veteran driver raised an eyebrow. Zhang Yuanqing sought her opinion: "What do you think I should do in this situation?"

Upon reading the message, his first reaction was anger—anger at the Xiahou family's lawlessness; his second reaction was suspicion—suspicion of the event's authenticity; his third reaction was caution.

Guan Ya thought for a few seconds, then frowned:

"I don't think it's right. The Xiahou family is domineering, sure, but not to the point of being this lawless. Ordinary people are indeed beneath their notice, but this is Songhai; they shouldn't be this reckless."

"You mean... the message is fake? Or the person wasn't taken by the Xiahou family?"

"No, I mean the Xiahou family's attitude toward Zhisha Palace is off. The retaliation has gone too far." Guan Ya's expression turned serious. "My advice is to stay out of it. The waters here run deep. If you insist on getting involved, then pressure them in an official capacity. But you're only an elite member, not a squad leader, let alone a deacon. The Xiahou family isn't afraid of you."

"I can call Centurion Fu."

Guan Ya let out a "hmph":

"You don't know him. I bet he'll answer you like this: If you believe in procedural justice, then go gather evidence and come back to me.

"If you follow consequential justice, then you don't need to come to me."

The Xiahou family's hands are definitely clean; I can't find evidence. And gathering evidence takes time—Wang Qian's sister's situation is unknown, and the longer it drags on, the more dangerous it gets...

Consequential justice? Isn't that exactly what Zhisha Palace advocates? ... Zhang Yuanqing glanced at her and said, "I'll go ask."

He turned and went back into the restroom.

A few minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing emerged with a strange expression and said loudly:

"You woman, tell me now, what's your relationship with Centurion Fu?"

Fu Qingyang's reply was almost exactly what she had said.

Guan Ya let out a "giggle" and laughed. "You guess~"

Zhang Yuanqing said nothing, his face dark, picked up his backpack, and left angrily.

Outside the security station, he hailed a taxi and headed to Wang Qian's sister's house.

Sitting in the car, he closed his eyes and thought for a few minutes, then came up with a plan.

"If I want to follow procedural justice, the best way is to borrow Fu Qingyang's command flag and force Xiahou Tianyuan to talk. But the squad leader isn't here, and if I go alone, Xiahou Tianyuan might start a fight, and then I might not be able to hold back from killing him."

"As for consequential justice, I can use the Red Dancing Shoes to find Wang Qian's sister. Then, with the evidence in hand, let's see how Xiahou Tianyuan tries to talk his way out of it."

Zhang Yuanqing took out his phone and sent a message to Wang Qian:

"Got it."

...

In the suburbs, in a low, old bungalow.

Wang Qian heard his phone "ding," his expression brightening. He quickly lit up the screen: "He replied."

His companions immediately crowded around.

"Got it"... Wang Qian looked at the message, his face turning to disappointment.

Three indifferent words—neither a promise nor a refusal—left him uneasy.

The Great Sage of Love sighed. "Let's change locations first and wait a bit longer. Not giving a guarantee actually shows he's steady, right? At least he didn't brush it off."

Wang Qian nodded.

Tiandi Buren and Wo Xing Wo Su exchanged glances, sighed silently, and began packing up.

...

In the car, Zhang Yuanqing heard a message alert on his phone. He picked it up to check. It was a text from Guan Ya.

I am his cousin.

Guan Ya is Fu Qingyang's cousin?!

Zhang Yuanqing was both surprised and unsurprised. He had long known that Guan Ya was no ordinary person, but he hadn't expected such a coincidence—that she was actually Fu Qingyang's cousin.

No, it wasn't accidental. It was quite reasonable that Centurion Fu would arrange for his cousin to work under him.

Moreover, this made it understandable why Guan Ya knew Fu Qingyang so well and lacked respect for him.

That being said, was Guan Ya's real name Fu Ya? At least her surname was Fu.

At that moment, the taxi stopped outside a residential community. The driver asked, "Scan code or cash?"

Zhang Yuanqing paid cash, pushed open the door, and entered the complex where Wang Qian's sister lived.

Wang Qian's sister didn't live in Kangyang District, but in neighboring Fenghui District. The complex's infrastructure was decent and the location passable. As a native of Songhai, Zhang Yuanqing could easily estimate property prices.

It should be around eighty thousand per square meter.

"Dong dong!"

He arrived at the floor where Wang Qian's sister lived and knocked on the security door.

After more than ten seconds, footsteps approached. They paused at the door for a few seconds, then someone looked through the peephole to observe Zhang Yuanqing before turning the knob and opening the door.

Standing in the doorway was a young man with a haggard face, anxiety and worry etched into his features. He scrutinized the stranger outside and said,

"Who are you looking for?"

Zhang Yuanqing didn't answer. He slid into the house, while the young man stood frozen on the spot.

He had fallen under an illusion.

Entering the living room, Zhang Yuanqing swept a glance at the room's layout, accurately located the bathroom, and pulled out a few strands of long hair from the shower drain. To be safe, he also found hair of the same texture on the pillow in the bedroom.

He stored away the strands and left Wang Qian's sister's home.

Walking out of the residential building, Zhang Yuanqing considered his next course of action.

"First, lock onto Wang Qian's sister's location. If she's being kept in some secret place, I'll save her then and there. If she's by Xia Hou Tianyuan's side, I'll hold off and call Fu Qingyang."

Thinking this, he scanned a shared bicycle, summoned the Red Dancing Shoes in a secluded spot, and stuffed the strands into the shoes.

Then, he cast an illusion to conceal their presence.

Tap tap tap... The Red Dancing Shoes circled joyfully around their useless master before racing off.

Slow down! Too fast! Zhang Yuanqing pedaled the bike furiously, chasing after them.

An hour later, Zhang Yuanqing arrived at the edge of Fenghui District. Here, commercial and residential buildings were fewer, and greenery and villa areas were more common.

The Red Dancing Shoes bounced along, its steps lively and brazen.

It reached the entrance of a villa community and, right in front of the security guard, swaggered in with an arrogant gait, acknowledging no one.

Luckily the guard couldn't see it, or he'd be trampled on the spot.

Zhang Yuanqing tossed the bike aside, looked around, noticed the traffic cameras, and nimbly ducked into the roadside greenery, entering his Night Travel state.

Concealing his form, Zhang Yuanqing dashed into the villa community, following the sensation to find the Red Dancing Shoes.

It was about to enter a two-story villa with a garden.

Seeing this, Zhang Yuanqing immediately ended the tracking.

The Red Dancing Shoes then pattered back to its master, demanding payment:

"Would you like to dance with me? If so, please stomp in place."

Who has time to dance with you now... Zhang Yuanqing sighed and left with the Red Dancing Shoes for now.

A few minutes later, still invisible, he returned to the villa, climbed over the wall, and entered the yard.

Zhang Yuanqing pressed against the villa wall, circled to the back garden, and saw three middle-aged men sitting at a table in the yard, basking in the sun. The table was covered with beer and snacks.

A potbellied middle-aged man took a gulp of beer and said,

"That woman has seen our faces. Should we kill her?"

"Master Tianyuan is still keeping her alive to lure out the people from the Stop Killing Palace," his companion shook his head.

Another companion said, "This is Songhai, after all. It's the territory of the Five Elements Alliance. Wouldn't killing be problematic?"

The potbellied man scoffed, "Has Master Tianyuan killed few ordinary people?"

"Those were all done covertly, or made to look like accidents or sudden deaths. This is different. Don't act rashly. In a few days, that Wang Qian should contact Master Tianyuan on his own."

Zhang Yuanqing waited for a few seconds. When the Night Travel duration ended, he used the skill again, concealed himself, and swiftly passed through the backyard and entered the villa, staying close to the wall.

Throughout this, the several middle-aged men at the table remained completely unaware.