Chapter 171: Crisis Approaching

This time, Zhang Yuanqing was confident he could slip past the Demon Eye Heavenly King's scan. With the Silencer mask sealing away his powers, there was no difference between him and any ordinary person. Judging by the prickling unease in his chest, Demon Eye had to be scanning from a considerable distance away. That vertical eye's range might be long, but Zhang Yuanqing refused to believe the man could scrutinize the mental state of every individual across such a wide net.

It was common knowledge that the broader a skill's reach, the harder it was to maintain any fine, detailed control within it.

The seconds crawled past. Roughly five minutes later, that suffocating sensation of being watched finally vanished.

Was it truly gone? Had the gaze shifted somewhere else? Zhang Yuanqing didn't dare relax. He stood at the window, eyes fixed on the silent darkness outside.

Two scenarios terrified him more than anything. The first was the sound of knocking at the front door, followed by the Demon Eye Heavenly King standing there in his sports headband, having come to pay a visit. That scenario was more horrifying than a vengeful spirit at the door. The second was the Demon Eye Heavenly King's face suddenly appearing outside his window, grinning ear to ear as he said, "Found you at last, Yuanshi Tianzun!" That would genuinely stop his heart.

Half an hour passed without incident. Neither of his fears materialized. Only then did Zhang Yuanqing let out a long breath, close the window, draw the curtains tight, and drag his exhausted body back to bed. He sank into a deep sleep.

***

A few hundred meters away, atop a residential building, the Demon Eye Heavenly King's vertical eye blazed with scarlet light as it swept from rooftop to rooftop, one building at a time.

After a long while, he dimmed the glow, secured the sports headband back into place, and sat on the edge of the rooftop, letting the muggy night breeze wash over him.

"Not in this area, then," he murmured to himself.

Yesterday's move must have spooked him, he thought. Yuanshi Tianzun wouldn't have fled Songhai entirely, would he? It's not easy making the trip south. Between Yuanshi Tianzun and the Slaughter Cessation Palace Master, I need to bag at least one of them. I'll head to Songhai University again tomorrow and poke around.

The Demon Eye Heavenly King flopped backward, spread eagled on the rooftop, and was snoring within moments.

***

The next morning, Zhang Yuanqing, operating with nothing more than an ordinary person's constitution, was jolted awake by a barrage of notification chimes. He'd forgotten to mute the White Tiger Guard group chat. Cursing under his breath, he grabbed his phone and scrolled through the messages.

Phoenix Descending: Guild Leader, I've uploaded Bill Tarantino and Annie's files to the group folder. I've also identified their reasons for coming to the mainland. Want me to share privately?

The user's avatar was an adorable Scottish fold. Zhang Yuanqing tapped the profile and confirmed it belonged to a woman.

Fu Qingyang: Go ahead and share here.

Phoenix Descending: Bill came to the mainland for two reasons. First, to conduct a transaction with the Five Elements Alliance. Second, to escort the president of the Merchants' Guild back to the Western Continent. As for why the Merchants' Guild President is on our side of the world, I haven't been able to determine yet.

Phoenix Descending: Annie is a member of the Aphrodite Society, which is allied with the Merchants' Guild. The two factions share a relationship similar to the five factions within our Five Elements Alliance. She serves as Bill Tarantino's assistant. Her objective on the mainland is to investigate the truth behind Demon Lord's death.

Phoenix Descending: Guild Leader, this round of intelligence gathering cost five hundred thousand in foreign currency. Please arrange reimbursement.

Zhang Yuanqing's mind sharpened considerably as he read through this. His first reaction was, should such sensitive intelligence really be discussed openly in a group chat?

Then it dawned on him. The members of White Tiger Guard were likely Fu Qingyang's true inner circle, the kind of people you could huddle together with and plot treason without batting an eye. That was why the centurion felt comfortable discussing critical matters in the group chat.

No wonder the centurion mentioned that inviting him to join White Tiger Guard required a group meeting to deliberate. The fact that it had taken so long to bring him in probably meant the others had opposed it at first. It wasn't until after the Bronze Sparrow Tower case that Fu Qingyang had pulled him into the fold.

Had that case changed how White Tiger Guard perceived him? Had his handling of it earned him their approval?

Zhang Yuanqing pulled his mind back from its wandering and continued reading.

Little Axe: The Merchants' Guild President. Has anyone actually heard of this person? If they were active on the mainland, they shouldn't be a nobody. And why are they on our turf?

Phoenix Descending: No idea. The Merchants' Guild people are tight-lipped about it. They completely refused to talk, no matter how much extra I offered.

Fu Qingyang: Strictly speaking, this person isn't the president of the Merchants' Guild. They're just the strongest member of the Void class. The Merchants' Guild essentially forced the title on them, crowning them as king. Also, this person is originally from our side of the sea.

Shichiro: Boss, boss, is there some juicy gossip here? Spill it.

Fu Qingyang: Nothing to tell. This individual is mysterious, and keeps a low profile. The Five Elements Alliance has zero records on them.

Zhang Yuanqing frowned. President? Void class? Based domestically?

Having just listened to the Demon Lord's audio recordings, Zhang Yuanqing was particularly sensitive to anything involving high-level Void Walkers. He quickly typed out a message.

Yuanshi Tianzun: Centurion, are there many Void Walkers in the country? @Fu Qingyang

Shichiro: Yuanshi Tianzun really is a greenhorn, huh. How can there be any domestic Void Walkers? What would be the point of the Spirit Realm's regional divisions then? If any exist here, they'd be visiting foreign Walkers, like Bill Tarantino, and there wouldn't be many of those.

So there weren't many, then, and high-level ones would be even rarer. Could the Void Walker Demon Lord encountered be this Merchants' Guild President? That figure had deliberately cultivated the Demon Lord. Whether their intentions toward his successor were good or bad was hard to say, but they would certainly be paying attention. He needed to keep his guard up.

While Zhang Yuanqing's mind raced with possibilities, Fu Qingyang posted another message.

Fu Qingyang: @Phoenix Descending, focus your investigation on the Aphrodite Society. Their relationship with Demon Lord was anything but ordinary. If they simply wanted to know how he died, a single email would suffice. The fact that Demon Lord and Ghost Eye Judge destroyed each other isn't a secret, and the Five Elements Alliance wouldn't withhold that information.

Phoenix Descending: I'll try, but don't get your hopes up, Guild Leader. The women in the Aphrodite Society are dangerously cunning. I do have one idea, though.

Phoenix Descending: Rather than going through all that trouble approaching the Aphrodite Society directly, why not try working Annie instead? Demon Lord was a Nocturnal Specter. If we tell Annie that Ling Jun is the Taiyi Sect's crown prince, she'd definitely take the bait.

Shichiro: Hahaha, brilliant idea. @Ling Jun

World Sweeper: I'm jealous. @Ling Jun.

Ling Jun: Get lost, all of you. You think I can just mess around with a woman from the Love and Desire class? She'd have me wrapped around her finger before I could extract a single piece of intel, unless you can give me a way to resist her demands.

Little Axe: Ling Jun has a point. Annie is at the Saint tier. At the same tier, a Spirit Realm Walker would struggle to resist her allure or refuse her demands. The only way to extract information from her would be to kidnap her and beat a confession out of her, but that would blow the whole thing wide open. It’s more trouble than it's worth.

The chat fell silent for a moment. It was a genuinely thorny problem. Based on everything they knew about the Love and Desire class, resisting the temptation alone was already nearly impossible. Once things went further, there was simply no refusing the other party's demands.

Even the Nocturnal Specter's purification abilities wouldn't help. After all, demands, at their core, weren't a negative status effect.

Zhang Yuanqing almost laughed. Getting the upper hand on a Love and Desire practitioner? That wasn't hard at all. He typed his response.

Yuanshi Tianzun: It's actually not that difficult. I have a method that would let you deal with a Love and Desire practitioner with zero consequences. @Ling Jun

Ling Jun: Don't say "zero consequences." That's so crude. It's a union of body and soul, a resonance of hearts. Anyway, do you really have a solution? Let's hear it.

Ling Jun didn't actually believe Yuanshi Tianzun could offer anything useful. The kid might be talented, sure, but his knowledge base was painfully thin. After all, true knowledge came from accumulation.

Yuanshi Tianzun: I recall there's a foreign class called "Knight." They possess the ability to forge contracts. Isn't it possible to use a Knight-class item to sign a contract with a Love and Desire Walker, binding them not to exact any price?

Ling Jun: !!!

Shichiro: !!!

World Sweeper: !!!

Little Axe: That... It actually might work. How did I never think of that? Yuanshi Tianzun, your angle of approach is genuinely inspired.

Phoenix Descending: A stroke of brilliance, honestly. How did none of us ever consider that? Guild Leader, this new recruit of yours has a sharp mind.

Ling Jun: Yuanshi, how do you have such keen instincts on this particular subject?

It's not my instinct that's keen, it's Demon Lord's, Zhang Yuanqing thought. It was perfectly normal not to have thought of it. What kind of upstanding person would dedicate time to researching how to get the upper hand on Love and Desire practitioners? Only Demon Lord would go there.

Fu Qingyang: Yuanshi's suggestion is excellent. I'll find a way to acquire a Knight class item. @Ling Jun

Centurion, when you get your hands on that item, you absolutely have to let me borrow it, Zhang Yuanqing thought. I'd also like to discuss some ideals with Annie...

He used the momentum to stay active in the conversation and grow increasingly familiar with the White Tiger Guard regulars. Gradually, they began shortening his title, dropping the "Tianzun" altogether.

Once the group chat fell quiet, Zhang Yuanqing dialed Fu Qingyang's number directly.

"Centurion, I sensed the Demon Eye Heavenly King's gaze last night. He tracked me all the way to my neighborhood. The Silencer mask saved me this time, but it can't be a long term solution."

He laid out his grievances to his superior, painting a picture of how relentlessly the Demon Eye Heavenly King was closing in. Fu Qingyang was silent for a good ten seconds before he replied.

—Understood. I'll relay your situation to Elder Teddy. We really can't afford to delay this any longer.

This game of cat and mouse might be merely tedious and inconvenient for the Demon Eye Heavenly King, but for Yuanshi Tianzun, a single misstep meant mortal danger.

***

At Songhai University, the Demon Eye Heavenly King stood with a small notebook in hand, pen cap between his teeth.

"You teach freshmen, correct? In your recollection, have any students been absent for an extended period recently?" he asked the middle-aged man in black-framed glasses and a short-sleeved button-up across from him.

"No idea," the professor replied with a slightly vacant gaze. "I never bother with students' attendance. Even if I did, I'd have forgotten by now. Who keeps track of that sort of thing?"

"Seriously?" The Demon Eye Heavenly King remarked with a sigh. "What an irresponsible teacher."

"On the contrary, I'd say I'm quite responsible," the middle-aged man answered matter-of-factly. "At least I deliver proper lectures. Whether students choose to listen is their own affair. Adults should take responsibility for their own choices. Students who want to learn will learn. Slackers who refuse to study won't change no matter how much you force them."

Hard to argue with that, actually. The Demon Eye Heavenly King considered for a moment, then asked, "Have you ever done anything unethical? For example, using your position to coerce female students into relations, or exploiting your authority for personal gain."

A flicker of struggle crossed the professor's face. "My health isn't great. I'm past that age... No, I haven't engaged in any misconduct."

The Demon Eye Heavenly King gave a slight nod. "Keep up the good work educating the next generation. Off you go."

He dismissed the professor and moved on to the next target. Over the course of the morning, through painstaking screening, the Demon Eye Heavenly King compiled a list of over thirty students who had been frequently absent in recent weeks.

Around noon, a group of students filed out of the teaching building and passed right by him.

"Hold on!" the Demon Eye Heavenly King called out to them.

The young students turned to look and found themselves staring into a pair of pupils as red as blood, with strange arcane symbols swirling within the irises. Their expressions froze instantly, and all capacity for independent thought drained from their minds.

The Demon Eye Heavenly King smiled warmly. "We're good classmates, good buddies, right?"

The students' faces went slack as they nodded along in unison. "Oh, yeah, totally..."

Every single one of them had been enchanted.

The Demon Eye Heavenly King turned his attention to a tall, thin young man with puffy bags under his eyes. "Are you a freshman? What's your name?"

"I'm Li Lesheng. Freshman," the lanky student answered reflexively.

Then, looking somewhat puzzled, he added, "Aren't we good buddies? How do you not know that?"

The Demon Eye Heavenly King kept on smiling. "Just making conversation. By the way, has anyone in your class been absent for a long time?"

"Absent for a long time..." Li Lesheng thought about it. "Yeah, actually. Zhang Yuanqing hasn't shown up in ages. Last time I added him as a friend and invited him to a mixer. He even said yes, but then I couldn't find him anywhere."

The Demon Eye Heavenly King perked up. "How do you write his name?"

Li Lesheng spelled it out. "Zhang, as in bow and long. Yuanqing, as in the yuan and qing from the Yuan and Qing dynasties."

The Demon Eye Heavenly King jotted the name down, then asked out of habit, "Have you ever done anything bad? Like abusing your position to—"

He trailed off as his eyes swept over the student's bargain-brand clothes, the shoes that couldn't have cost more than one or two hundred, and the dark circles earned from late night gaming sessions. He swallowed the rest of the question and waved him off.

"Go eat lunch."

The first round of names had been mostly gathered. The next step was to infiltrate the school's records office and cross reference every name on the list.

Yuanshi Tianzun was an official Walker. His name would have been scrubbed from all records, and the school archives wouldn't have any trace of him.

Whichever student's name couldn't be found would be Yuanshi Tianzun.

***

A curly-haired poodle sat perched on a desk inside a pet shop. A potted plant at the corner extended its tendrils, opened a laptop, typed in a password, and logged into an online conferencing application.

Within a few minutes, the elders of the Songhai Branch came online one by one. The sixth to join was the Slaughter Cessation Palace Master.

Elder Teddy let out a sigh. "Everyone, Fu Qingyang just contacted me. The Demon Eye Heavenly King has tracked Yuanshi down to his home. The Official Tournament organized by headquarters begins in one week. We can't afford to postpone this any longer. It's time we dealt with this Demon Eye.

"Luoshen, you've fought him before. What's his combat strength like?"