Ning Beichen walked up to the godfather and checked him. He found that everything on him was still there, even his wallet, but his mobile phone was missing. Therefore, Ning Beichen immediately ruled out robbery.
Ning Beichen didn't know if the godfather didn't use a mobile phone or if someone had taken it, but he was sure it had something to do with James.
Now that the godfather was dead, Ning Beichen couldn't contact James. He could only investigate while waiting for James to contact him.
Just as Ning Beichen was pondering, he suddenly sensed movement outside the church. Before he could even walk out, he saw a group of people rush in, and they looked like police.
"Don't move, hands up!"
The police outside shouted at Ning Beichen, all pointing guns at him.
Ning Beichen frowned again. The arrival of the police at this moment felt less like a coincidence and more like a trap, a trap specifically set for him to fall into.
This meant that from the moment he got off the plane and arrived at the church, someone had been orchestrating everything from behind the scenes.
The sudden appearance of the thugs, the dead godfather, the police who shouldn't have been there but suddenly appeared—none of this was a coincidence.
Ning Beichen could also guess the next turn of events: after these police officers entered, they would find the murdered godfather, and he would become the murderer.
He would be arrested by the police as the murderer, and he might not even reach the police station before something unexpected happened.
Or he would be directly thrown into prison. In any case, he wouldn't have a good outcome.
Explanation?
The godfather wasn't killed by him.
It was useless!
This was their territory, and they had a hundred, a thousand ways to easily pin the godfather's death on him, regardless of evidence.
Therefore, Ning Beichen had no intention of wasting time here.
Since there was a mastermind controlling everything from behind the scenes, if Ning Beichen wanted to find James, he had to find this mastermind.
With that in mind, Ning Beichen unleashed his aura, which struck like a shockwave, stunning everyone. He then flipped out of the church window and quickly disappeared into the darkness.
If he was going to fight the mastermind, he had to go from the light to the shadows, otherwise, he would be very passive.
Although with his abilities, he wasn't afraid of these troubles, trouble was still trouble. He was here to help James, not to play games. Ning Beichen wasn't a fool; he wouldn't follow the script of the mastermind.
After leaving the church, Ning Beichen didn't go far. He hid in the shadows, observing, hoping to spot the mastermind.
Unfortunately, Ning Beichen waited until midnight without finding any trace of the mastermind. He had to leave.
It was already late at night, and he needed to find a place to rest and then think about how to find James next.
If it were in the past, with his power as the King of Darkness, he could easily mobilize his forces to search for someone.
But he was no longer the King of Darkness, and his forces had been disbanded. Only a few people followed him, and he had already removed them from the King of Darkness, preventing them from getting involved in such matters.
Therefore, he had no one to rely on at the moment.
However, saying he had no one wasn't entirely accurate, as he controlled six powerful Transcenders. But this was not something Transcenders could solve.
They were outsiders, and Ning Beichen was a native. If even he, the native, couldn't solve it, what was the point of seeking their help?
However, just because Ning Beichen had no one to use didn't mean he had no solutions.
Ning Beichen didn't go to a hotel but found a lodging house in Chinatown.
The lodging house was dilapidated and catered specifically to people without legal status.
"Without legal status" meant it was for people from the East who were working illegally.
The price of the lodging house was not expensive, only the conditions were poor, with one room accommodating seven or eight people.
Furthermore, the fact that this lodging house could operate and provide shelter to these people must mean there was a vested interest connection with certain local individuals.
But Ning Beichen wasn't here to stay; he was here to find the local power broker.
However, meeting the local power broker wouldn't be easy. It wasn't something that could be done with just a word. He needed to use some tactics.
And the best tactic was naturally to use money as a way to pave the path.
Before long, Ning Beichen met a bald man with a potbelly.
"My subordinate said you wanted to see me?"
The bald man asked Ning Beichen impolitely.
"That's right. I'm here to buy some information."
Ning Beichen got straight to the point.
He used the word "buy" because others wouldn't give him information for free.
"What information do you want to know?"
Seeing that Ning Beichen was so straightforward, the bald man knew he was an experienced person and became a little more polite.
"I want to know James's whereabouts."
Ning Beichen told him.
If the other party knew, they would consider selling him the information instead of asking too many questions.
"You're looking for James?"
The bald man's expression changed, and he asked nervously.
"Yes, you can name your price."
Seeing his reaction, Ning Beichen knew he definitely knew James's whereabouts.
"Sorry, I don't know his whereabouts."
However, the bald man refused to say.
"One million."
Ning Beichen immediately offered a sum of money. There was no information that couldn't be bought, only the price was not high enough.
"I really don't know."
Hearing Ning Beichen offer a million dollars right off the bat made the bald man's heart race, but he still refused.
"Two million."
Ning Beichen continued to throw money at him. This was more effective than any empty talk.
The bald man's heart beat faster, but he still didn't speak, as if he had something to fear.
"Three million."
Ning Beichen continued to offer more money. If a problem could be solved with money, then it wasn't a problem.
The bald man's breathing became heavy, like a working engine.
"Five million."
Ning Beichen directly raised the price to five million. For the bald man, this was already an enormous sum.
"I only know that he was captured by people from the Badge Disciples."
Finally, the bald man's defenses were broken by Ning Beichen's money. He quickly blurted out the information, as if he had done something wrong, fearing that someone behind him might hear.
"Give me the address of the Badge Disciples, and five million is yours."
Ning Beichen told him.
"Okay, but you can't reveal the source of the information to anyone, or I'll die."
The bald man gave Ning Beichen an address.
Ning Beichen kept his word, transferred the money to him, and then left.
However, Ning Beichen didn't immediately set out to rescue James. Instead, he found another small lodging house to spend the night.
Since James had already been captured, it wouldn't make much difference to wait a little longer. Moreover, he would need a car to get to that place.