A World Worth Protecting

Wang Baole had a slightly nervous look on his face, and his eyes were shifty. It was as if he was trying to hide something. It was as if someone had found out something incriminating about him and had that information in their grasp; they hadn’t yet unveiled the information yet, but once they did, it would be exposed to the public.

Zhuo Yixian had known Wang Baole for quite some time. This was the first time he had seen such an expression on Wang Baole’s face. His eyes flashed, and even his breath quickened. He was secretly excited. His face remained expressionless; however, he was inwardly pleased. It was as if spring had suddenly arrived, and a field of flowers had blossomed in his heart, soothing his spirit.

He had long held a deep grudge against Wang Baole in his heart. The source of their original conflict had been Zhuo Yifan, but they had crossed paths multiple times since. Their tense relationship had evolved past that; it no longer had anything to do with Zhuo Yifan. Zhuo Yixian simply disliked Wang Baole, and Wang Baole felt the same towards Zhuo Yixian as well.

If not for his wariness of Wang Baole’s impulsive nature and prowess as a fighter, Zhuo Yixian wouldn’t have had to go to such lengths. He would have beaten the man up and crippled him. Who cared about how powerful he was and how powerful the people supporting him were?

Zhuo Yixian snorted inwardly. Since he had arrived on Mars and received his posting in the Colony Disciplinary Order, he had been trying to find fault with Wang Baole. He wasn’t going to go on the offensive so easily. When he did, he would make sure it was a killing blow that he delivered!

He had only been giving Wang Baole a taste of what was to come when he had gone to the Dao Mountain Mist Academy to arrest the teacher. He had not seen that as part of his plan of attack. Today though… today was the day when he, Zhuo Yixian, would reveal what he was capable of!

A cultivator who only knows how to fight is a mere brute. Since we’ve joined the system, we should know how to make use of all the resources we have, including our political support… today shall be the day I, Zhuo Yixian, avenge myself! Zhuo Yixian was overcome with excitement. It had been pure luck that he had managed to get hold of the evidence he had.

The blood-colored mist and winds that had appeared a few months ago had not only received special attention from the military. The Colony Disciplinary Order had also received orders to assist with the investigation. The focus of their investigation was to find out whether the phenomenon was man-made.

Even though the Governor was of the opinion that it was highly improbable that this was a man-made incident, there was still a need to carry out an investigation. Zhuo Yixian’s authority in the Colony Disciplinary Order could not equal Li Wan’er’s, but he still held significant power. He had been eager to prove himself and hence had poured a great deal of energy into the case.

Li Wan’er had been busy following up with the incident that had happened to Team Six and overwhelmed with work. Seeing how Zhuo Yixian had been so hard at work, she had left him full control of the investigation.

Having been given full rein of the case, Zhuo Yixian started to investigate furiously. Amidst the investigation, he had discovered something suspicious. When the military had sought Wang Baole that night, he had been missing!

No one knew where he had gone… this would have been a small, insignificant matter if not for the series of coincidences that had happened that day: the arrest at the academy, Wang Baole’s visit to the Colony Disciplinary Order headquarters, the appearance of the blood-colored mist and winds, and the discovery of the bizarre villages!

Zhuo Yixian had instinctively felt that something was amiss when studying the series of coincidences. He had felt then that something wasn’t right with Wang Baole’s disappearance that night. They had been mere suspicions though. It would have ended there if it had been someone else, but Zhuo Yixian had disliked Wang Baole all along. He had used his authority to his advantage and put in more energy into the investigation.

His search had led him to a shocking discovery. All records of Wang Baole that night had been wiped clean. This had included his visit to the Colony Disciplinary Order. Zhuo Yixian had been shocked by that discovery. He had pondered over the matter before intensifying the search and had even resorted to using his own family clan’s resources on Mars.

That hadn’t resulted in any new leads… he had found that out of the ordinary. As long as Wang Baole had been on Mars, based on the resources of the Colony Disciplinary Order and his own family clan, he should have been able to trace where he had been that night. But it was as if… a mysterious person had destroyed all records of where Wang Baole had been and what he had done that night!

Zhuo Yifan had been overjoyed and excited at that discovery. He had felt that there must be something strange going on. His instincts had told him then that there was something big going on. This was a chance for him to prove himself. He hadn’t told anyone about his findings. He had buried himself deep in work and used whatever authority he had to investigate further. The heavens had smiled on him and rewarded his efforts. Finally… he had found a piece of evidence!

He had done some reverse engineering to locate that evidence. He had searched through all the files that had been modified or deleted that day. He had gone through each and every one of those countless files and had finally located a video… that had been wiped!

It had been a video that was related to the heretic cultivator who had posed as a teacher in the Dao Mountain Mist Academy. It had been a secret recording taken in the secret chamber outside the city!

The secret chamber had been preserved to lure the arrested heretic cultivator’s accomplices. That was why the Colony Disciplinary Order had set up video recording equipment secretly. Few would generally check such recordings, what more modify and delete a segment.

This discovery had excited Zhuo Yixian greatly. After locking down on the secret chamber, he had subsequently found out that blood-colored mist and winds had appeared in that region that night as well!

All the evidence had led Zhuo Yixian to believe that Wang Baole had done something unspeakable that night. It had something to do with the blood-colored mist and winds!

Zhuo Yixian had realized that this was a big case. He had then become more cautious. He had continued his secret investigation. After locating the deleted segment of the video recording, he had contacted a specialist in that area in his family clan to restore the deleted recording to the best of his ability. He had secretly sent the jade slip over to the specialist.

The restoration would take some time, but Zhuo Yixian had felt his evidence foolproof. In the heat of the moment, he had not been able to contain his impatience at seeing Wang Baole’s pale face drained of blood. That had been why he had summoned Wang Baole earlier.

He had thought then, that if Wang Baole had tried to resist out of fear, it would have been perfect.

Wang Baole hadn’t done that and instead had gone along without making a fuss. However, now, as Zhuo Yixian watched the expression on Wang Baole’s face and heard what he had said, he was beyond excited and gleeful. He placed his hands behind his back and smirked.

“Wang Baole, I heard you were in charge of disciplinary matters while in the Ethereal Dao College. Don’t you know that we, at the Colony Disciplinary Order… are in charge of finding out precisely the kind of things people wish to hide?”

“There wouldn’t be a need for us Colony Disciplinary Order if you’re willing to confess everything. Let me tell you, Wang Baole. What you’ve committed is a serious crime. Even if you try to keep your lips sealed… I’ll still have a way to make you talk!” Zhuo Yixian narrowed his eyes when he said that. An icy glimmer flashed across his eyes. Excitement surged inside him. He sneered inwardly, laughing at the state that Wang Baole had gotten himself into!

Wang Baole stared at Zhuo Yixian. He could sense the latter’s excitement. A strange feeling unfurled inside him. From where he was standing, Zhuo Yixian was racing furiously towards his inevitable downfall…

After all, the high officials’ autobiographies had been clear on this point… it was a sin to dig into the private matters of one’s superior. It was the worst crime one could commit!

I wonder what Li Wan’er was thinking. Maybe she was too busy with other matters and didn’t realize this was happening? Maybe this is a test? Is a test really necessary… it’s highly likely that Zhuo Yixian carried out an independent investigation secretly… Wang Baole muttered inwardly. He saw how arrogant and confident Zhuo Yixian was, and sighed. Then, he revealed a look of uncertainty on his face. It was as if he was torn. He gritted his teeth and forced blood to surface in the veins in his eyes. He raised his head and said loudly.

“I’m not saying anything!”

The more Wang Baole presented himself this way, the more excited Zhuo Yixian got. It was as if spring had arrived, and his heart burst into song. A cold glint flickered in his eyes. He slammed the table before Wang Baole suddenly.

The table, made from special material, made a loud thud. It was deafening and inspired fear. Zhuo Yixian’s voice carried a hint of threat and violence as it rang out loudly in the room.

“Wang Baole, the Colony Disciplinary Order has thirty-six ways of getting our suspects to talk. How many do you think you can withstand? I’ll ask you another time. Are you going to talk?”

Wang Baole hesitated when he heard about torture. He was deliberating whether he should just say something. It was then that suddenly, the doors to the secret room swung open. Seven to eight expressionless cultivators in black robes walked in. At the head of the group was Li Wan’er!

She had a cold expression on her face like she usually did. She walked in, with her well-endowed form and frost in her eyes!

As soon as Wang Baole saw Li Wan’er, he lengthened his neck immediately. His neck turned red, and his veins popped out from his forehead. He yelled at the top of his voice, as if in the face of death.

“Zhuo Yixian, I, Wang Baole, would rather die than tell you what happened that night!”