Chapter 732: Hunter

Chapter 732: Chapter 83: Hunter

The telegram to the Upper Layer was sent quickly. After taking care of it, Gao Yanjun returned and said, “Manager Chen, Mr. Chang, I’ve reported the message we received in full.”

Chen Chuan and Chang Dong exchanged a look. All they could do now was wait for news from headquarters. This matter likely involved a Fighting Master, making it extremely complex. How they would proceed depended on the consensus reached at headquarters.

Chen Chuan said, “We can’t just sit around passively at the branch office waiting for news from headquarters. According to Tian Rui, that man, Qi Qianyang, has been following the target for years. He’s one of the two instructors at the Swamp Training Camp and is incredibly strong.”

“Tian Rui said he appeared three days ago, but I never received any report. That means he didn’t enter through the Merging Land passage we’re monitoring.”

“I suspect someone provided him with a channel. Regardless of who it was, it proves that the training camp, or he personally, has someone backing and supporting them.”

Chang Dong said, “That complicates things immensely.”

This meant they weren’t just up against the Swamp Training Camp; other factions were involved.

In truth, they were somewhat mentally prepared for this. For a training camp to be established in the Merging Land, it would have to be backed by significant resources. It would be impossible without the support of a major power.

Just then, Chen Chuan took out several printed hand-drawn pictures from his pocket. He unfolded them one by one, smoothed them out, and spread them across the table.

These were the main Fighters from the Swamp Training Camp. The Bureau’s professional Painter had recreated their faces one by one based on the descriptions from the captured Qu Tianli. They might not be perfect replicas, but they were at least ninety percent accurate.

He pointed to one of the figures, a relatively young man dressed as an instructor, and said, “Judging by his age, this must be the one Qu Tianli was talking about.”

Chang Dong looked at the picture. Although it was drawn from a verbal description, the Painter had captured the man’s aura perfectly.

The man in the drawing wore a soft, round, brimmed hat. His gaze was incredibly sharp; you could feel a strong sense of aggression emanating from the paper itself.

“This person has rarely appeared in Central City before. For him to show up now, he’s almost certainly targeting us.”

Chen Chuan stared at the picture. “My thinking is this: before the decision comes down from headquarters, we should do our best to resolve this ourselves. We can’t waste this time. We need to be proactive and eliminate the immediate threat as much as possible.”

If this wasn’t handled properly, they couldn’t even guarantee their own survival, let alone expand the branch and recruit more members.

But they couldn’t just wait for reinforcements from headquarters—who knew how long that would take? Headquarters wasn’t their babysitter; they had to figure out how to remove this stumbling block themselves.

Chang Dong asked, “Manager Chen, what’s your plan?”

Chen Chuan said, “I might be able to draw him out. Since he’s coming for us, I can try to give him an opportunity.”

He looked at Chang Dong and Gao Yanjun. “The two of you can stay here. Weiguang District is heavily fortified and guarded by powerful Fighters. He can do almost nothing here. I, on the other hand, will be out there, giving him a chance to make his move.”

Gao Yanjun then gathered the sketches, straightened them, and pinned them one by one onto the display board in front of them. She drew a line under Qi Qianyang’s name with a red pen.

Chang Dong looked at it and said, “You know, seeing it up there like that makes me really want to draw a big X over it.”

Chen Chuan looked at the man’s eyes in the picture. He had a feeling the man might come directly for him.

But the roles of hunter and prey can be reversed.

He said, “Mr. Chang, no problem. When the time comes, I’ll leave that task to you.”

Chang Dong smiled. “Then it’s a deal.”

The next morning, after disembarking from the Airship, Chen Chuan didn’t head back to Wuyi. Instead, he first went to the Processing Bureau to arrange a few things.

When he arrived this time, however, he found the personnel at the Processing Bureau hurrying about. Everyone from top to bottom was busy; he didn’t even see any of the Bureau’s top brass.

He knew this was because of the arrival of the Federation and the Lynx Federation, which forced the Processing Bureau to focus most of its attention on the two parties.

Both were factions of immense influence and power, and with them both in Central City at the same time, it created a tangled mess of related affairs.

On top of that, there was the matter of the Lost Object. The personnel involved with it were all running themselves ragged.

Just then, a communication request from Ni Qianqian came through the Bureau’s internal platform. He accepted the call. She first greeted him, then said, “Manager Chen, Liu Yin says he wants to join your team?”

Chen Chuan replied, “Yes, I agreed.”

Ni Qianqian said, “Well, his family’s elders contacted me. They wanted me to thank you and said they’d like to treat you to a meal sometime if you’re free.”

Chen Chuan replied, “I don’t have time recently. We can talk about it when I’m free. What, his family doesn’t object?”

“That kid is the most talented of his generation. The elders have all observed him. As long as he doesn’t run into any personal issues and has enough resources, reaching the Third Limit isn’t actually that difficult for him. So, the elders have to respect his decision.”

Chen Chuan nodded. He could tell that the Mutated Organization in Liu Yin’s body was already approaching the limit of the Second Limit. Reaching the Third Limit was a matter of a few months at most.

His elders must have been able to see that as well. Frankly, a Fighter who has reached the Third Limit shouldn’t be constrained, nor could he be. He would be a force in his own right.

“Besides, what’s there to be dissatisfied about with following you, Manager Chen? You’re the youngest Investigation Chief in our Bureau. Anyone can see you have a bright future ahead of you. The old-timers can’t say a thing about him following you.”

Chen Chuan smiled. “My door is always open. If anyone else wants to join, they can come find me.”

He had met these disciples from the Fighting Families before. Each and every one of them was rigorously trained. You could say they were cultivated specifically to join the Processing Bureau. Once they joined, they could almost immediately be put to use as capable hands.

Ni Qianqian laughed. “Then I’ll be sure to let them know. Oh, right, one more thing. The exchange delegation of teachers and students from the Lynx Federation arrived recently. We’ve had several exchanges with them, with some wins and some losses.”

“But it’s clear that while they claim to be from a single academy, they’re likely elites drawn from various places. That’s why we’ve been losing a bit more often.”

Chen Chuan said, “If these exchanges help us recognize our own shortcomings, then it’s not a bad thing.”

“I think so too, but the Academy is concerned about saving face. After the fall of the Ferris Wheel, the Lynx Federation lost its proxy in the Outer Ocean. The ones who came to the Academy this time are here to regain some of that lost prestige. We can’t just let them have their way, so the Academy proposed another separate exchange just between the instructors. They wanted me to ask if you, Manager Chen, would be willing to step up?”

Chen Chuan asked, “Is this Assistant Ling’s idea?”

Ni Qianqian said, “It’s Vice Principal Tan’s idea. Of course, he just wanted me to ask. If it’s really inconvenient, then never mind.”

Chen Chuan said, “Then please reply to him for me. I don’t have time.”

“Alright,” Ni Qianqian replied crisply.

After ending the call, Chen Chuan thought for a moment. ‘Vice Principal Tan…’

He was Assistant Ling’s direct superior, the one who had pushed for the academy’s fighting tournament. Since taking office, he had secured a massive amount of funding for Wuyi Academy, giving him significant sway there.

However, although Chen Chuan was a Wuyi teacher, it was only to make use of Wuyi’s resources. As an Investigation Chief for the Processing Bureau, he was only half a rank lower than the Vice Principal and had no direct subordinate relationship. He could completely disregard the man’s request.

Right now, he was singularly focused on improving his Spiritual Power. He didn’t give matters like this a second thought.

Leaving the Processing Bureau, he got into his private car and prepared to head to the branch office under construction in Hongsheng District. At the same time, he wanted to see if he could lure that person out.

As the car was about to enter Hongsheng District, An Shield’s voice suddenly came through: “Manager Chen, a car is following us. The owner has surveillance immunity, making it difficult to detect their specific identity. Information indicates they are from the Lynx Federation.”

A glint appeared in Chen Chuan’s eyes. He immediately placed his hand on his Realm Token and contacted Wu Bei. “Brother Wu, check on the person behind me. Be careful.”

Wu Bei patted his chest and said, “Manager, just leave it to me. I’ll have it in a jiffy.”

He wasn’t exaggerating. Just a moment later, information about the person was transmitted to Chen Chuan’s Realm Token.

Unsurprisingly, the man was a member of the Lynx Federation’s diplomatic team. His name was Percival Haverford, twenty-seven years old, and a teacher from the Federation’s Qiongjian Academy.

Qiongjian Academy, like Wuyi Academy, was an orthodox institution for training Fighters at the national level. The difference was that Qiongjian Academy was a foreign institution, which also accepted a large number of students from other countries and regions.

After reading it, Chen Chuan thought for a moment, then looked up and said, “Stop the car.”

The convoy quickly pulled over to the side of the road.

The car following them also stopped. The door opened, and a smiling young foreigner stepped out.

The man had curly black hair, deep-set blue eyes, and a squarish face with slightly rounded features. His skin was tanned a bronze color, and he wore a blue-gray Fighting Suit. He exuded the distinct aura of an elite fighter.

After an attendant opened the door for him, Chen Chuan stepped out of the car. He looked at the other man and said, “Mr. Haverford, given that you are a member of a diplomatic team, I must inform you that your actions were both rude and dangerous.”

Haverford spread his hands and said in somewhat stilted Dashun, “I am truly sorry. I am willing to apologize to you. Please forgive my actions.”

After that sentence, he switched to the Lynx Federal Language. “I simply heard from someone at your esteemed academy that you, Manager Chen, are the teacher with the highest fighting standards. I couldn’t restrain my curiosity.”

“Manager Chen, I have already defeated two instructors in a row at your academy, but my team leader said we had to be considerate of your reputation, so I had to reluctantly step down. But I feel I could have easily beaten two more.”