Chapter 324: Chapter 324: Is the Duanmu Family Really Behind This?
"What a bunch of diehards. Let’s go; we’ve got a live one here. You guys can cast seals, right?"
"Sealing is a basic skill for an independent squad."
Wang Lan, controlling the tendrils of Sentient Beings, loosened his grip, revealing a middle-aged man inside. The man’s eyes were rolled back as if he had been ravaged by a dozen wealthy matrons—worn and haggard. Yang Yang and Zhang Xiao swiftly took action, their movements shimmering with Yin and Yang Star Power as they almost simultaneously slapped their palms against the man’s forehead.
Three seconds later, they released him, and a Tai Chi fish mark appeared on the man’s brow.
"Done!"
"Take him away!"
The group of five got into the car, Wang Lan constantly feeling a pair of eyes staring at him.
Wang Lan turned his face and flashed a smile at Bai Xu. "Miss Bai Xu, you’ve been eyeing me the entire way. Can’t you be a little more reserved?"
"Captain, are you from the Yu Family?"
"What’s going through your mind? My surname is Wang. How could I possibly be from the Yu Family?"
"It’s close, though, right? If you add a little stroke, ’Wang’ becomes ’Yu,’ doesn’t it?"
"..."
"No reply, so is that a tacit agreement? Don’t worry, Captain. We’re an elite squad; we understand confidentiality rules and will ensure nothing leaks."
"Give me a break! The way you’re going, people will soon be unable to tell Wang from Yu. My identity is perfectly clear; isn’t your imagination a bit too wild?"
"But you use Wood Attribute Star Martial Skills. Wood Attribute Star Martial Skills are quite rare, and the most famous practitioners are from the Yu Family."
"However rare Wood Attribute might be, could it be rarer than the Medical Attribute? Actually, Wood Attribute Star Martial Warriors aren’t that scarce. It’s just that the only well-known experts are from the Yu Family and the Duanmu Family. Add to that the prominent rise of the Qing Emperor, and many Wood Attribute Star Martial Warriors, seeking to align with the Qing Emperor’s faction, claim to be from the Yu Family externally. This has caused misunderstandings among uninformed spectators."
"Oh... wait, are you implying that I’m one of the uninformed spectators?"
"Please, remove the ’implying’ part. If you can understand it, how can it be an implication?"
"Hahaha..."
Wang Lan and his team departed, and the wailing sirens of police cars arrived once more.
Today was somewhat frustrating for the police, who had spent the whole day trailing the Tianjian Bureau, either cleaning up or covering their rear.
The four arrived at Ming Baiye’s office to report. When Ming Baiye heard Wang Lan discussing the case results, his expression froze for a full five seconds.
Then, after swallowing his tea, he feigned calmness and asked, "It’s only been a day and a half? The case is solved?"
"Yes, it’s solved. This case wasn’t actually that difficult," Wang Lan said modestly.
Behind him, Liu Yifeng’s mouth twitched. Not difficult? Are you kidding me? I still haven’t figured out how the case was solved! How did you even find Jinghua Mansion? I went to bed last night with no leads, and this morning you woke me up saying there was a major breakthrough? It feels like a piece of history is missing.
"Who’s the murderer? And why did he kill?"
"The killer is Wei Zheng. He was once Xiao Qing’s teammate, responsible for covering their retreat, and miraculously survived a great disaster. He is at the initial stage of the Star Sea realm. His combat style is close-quarters and swift, and he possesses innate abilities to conceal himself and his Star Power. His swordsmanship is also extremely high."
"Wei Zheng? That name sounds familiar... I think he was Bai Xiaoyun’s team leader. If it’s him, then he must be one of Hellfire’s men. Why the killings? Revenge against society?"
"After Xiao Qing was suppressed, the puppet master behind the scenes still attempted to eradicate everyone involved. That’s why an assassin was sent to kill Bai Ji. Although Xiao Qing didn’t reveal the puppet master, he didn’t truly leave himself without a contingency plan. If the puppet master tried to root them out completely, Xiao Qing would play his last card, ensuring mutual destruction. And that last card was in Wei Zheng’s hands. Wei Zheng’s murders were merely a way to vent his anger. In his own words, he hates traitors the most. That’s all."
"Wait, are you saying you have information on Xiao Qing’s puppet master? Is it the Duanmu Family?" Ming Baiye lost his composure, standing up abruptly to ask.
"It should be the Duanmu Family, but I have no concrete evidence. However, we found some Spiritual Engraving Soul Beads in Wei Zheng’s house. They should contain evidence left by Xiao Qing that can pinpoint the puppet master."
"Let’s go. I’ll report to the Chief, and then we can examine the evidence together."
"By the way, Chief, could you help me investigate someone?"
"Who?"
"Duanmu Fanghua, also known as Mu Fanghua. Please be as detailed as possible—include his family, relatives, friends, social network, and so on."
"Why investigate him?"
"I always get an unsettling feeling from him, like he’s a poisonous snake. Plus, he was at Jinghua Mansion today when we arrested Wei Zheng. Although his home is indeed in Jinghua Mansion, we were immediately ambushed by diehards on our way back. How were our movements exposed? I don’t believe the Duanmu Family could know my every move that quickly. If they were that capable, they would have taken control of Modu City by now."
"You suspect... Duanmu Fanghua tipped them off?"
"Yes. I suspect Duanmu Fanghua had also just found Wei Zheng, because I saw him walking below Wei Zheng’s apartment building. His own home is near the north gate. Even if he was returning from grocery shopping, there was no need to bypass the closer north gate and enter through the south gate. But this is just a suspicion; I have no proof."
"Alright! I’ll arrange for someone to look into it as soon as possible."
「An hour later, Chief Cheng Jianlong brought a middle-aged man into the meeting room.」
"This is Special Envoy Yu Ruozhen from the General Staff. This is Ming Baiye, Head of the Action Department of the Modu City Tianjian Bureau. And this is Major Wang Lan from the Action Department."
"Greetings, Special Envoy!"
"Wang Lan, I have long admired your reputation! In the future, I hope you will continue to look after matters concerning Princess Yu Ruoyun." The man politely shook Wang Lan’s hand but was noticeably colder towards Ming Baiye.
"Baiye, tell us, have you made any significant discoveries?"
"Chief, Special Envoy. Yesterday morning, I called Wang Lan in and assigned him the recent bizarre serial murder case. Wang Lan truly lived up to expectations; he identified the killer in just a day and a half. The killer, Wei Zheng, was an accomplice of Xiao Qing. His motive for the murders was to avenge Xiao Qing. In Wei Zheng’s home, we collected a large number of mid-grade Soul Beads. Most importantly, we also found the Spiritual Engraving Soul Beads left by Xiao Qing—items he refused to reveal even up to his death. After classification with the Evidence Department, we confirmed that Xiao Qing’s backer was none other than Duanmu Qingsuang, the patriarch of the Duanmu Family. Xiao Qing left multiple images of his visits to Duanmu Qingsuang and of him taking orders from Duanmu Qingsuang."
"The Duanmu Family? Hmph, I should have thought of it sooner!" Yu Ruozhen exclaimed, his expression displeased. "The Star Martial families of today are becoming increasingly disgraceful. It’s only been seventy years of peace, and many of these families are rotten to the core. Smuggling Space Stones, trafficking Space Stones, smuggling Soul Beads, trafficking Soul Beads... The Duanmu Family, after all, is one of Jade Country’s top Star Martial families, and Duanmu Qingsuang is the head of a clan, yet he shows no regard for his own reputation!"
"Is that all?" Cheng Jianlong asked calmly after listening.
The purpose of targeting Xiao Qing was to stabilize the Soul Bead market, not to pursue the matter to its absolute end. As for who was supporting Xiao Qing from behind... that wasn’t particularly important. If they could be dealt with, then they would be. If not, the matter would be set aside for now.
"Chief, there’s one piece of footage that is very unusual. Wang Lan!"
"Yes!"
Wang Lan took out a Soul Bead and read its contents. Then, extending his left hand, Star Power surged, and a green, shimmering screen made of Star Power materialized before him, displaying an image.
It was a dimly lit secret room. Duanmu Qingsuang sat in the main seat, while Xiao Qing stood before him, head bowed respectfully.
"Xiao Qing, I’ve just received one hundred thousand Soul Beads. Dispose of them as quickly as possible."
"Quickly? How much time do I have?"
"One month!"
"Isn’t that too rushed? The demand for Soul Beads hasn’t been very high lately."
"I don’t want to hear about your difficulties; I just want results. I need a large sum of money now. My clients want a large quantity of Space Stones."
"Dumping one hundred thousand Soul Beads onto the market at once will impact their price significantly, and profits will shrink considerably."
"I need five billion."
"Even if one hundred thousand Soul Beads are sold at the normal market price, that’s only five billion. Dumping so many at once means we’ll have to sacrifice a portion of the profit, and it has to be done within a month. It will be very difficult to reach five billion. At most... at most three billion."
"Xiao Qing, don’t think that just because I’ve entrusted everything to you, I’m unaware of your little schemes. I can build you up, and I can just as easily replace you and build someone else up. Among those one hundred thousand Soul Beads, ten thousand are mid-grade. And you’re telling me you can’t get five billion?"
"Yes, sir. I’ll do my best."
"If there’s nothing else, you may leave. The one hundred thousand Soul Beads will be delivered to you tonight."
"Boss, may I be so bold as to ask the source of these hundred thousand Soul Beads?"
"You can record it under Liu Xiao’s name."
"Understood. Then I shall take my leave."
The footage froze, and the information it contained caused the expressions of everyone present to turn grave.
"The hundred thousand Soul Beads from Star Martial Academy weren’t sold off by Liu Xiao... but by Duanmu Qingsuang. What a cunning old fox! Truly reckless and audacious," Yu Ruozhen exclaimed indignantly.
"That’s not even the most important part," Ming Baiye said, sharing the conclusions he and Wang Lan had discussed. "Before this, the Tianjian Bureau was investigating who assisted Liu Xiao in selling off Star Martial Academy’s hundred thousand Soul Beads. Liu Xiao had already been silenced, and the lead provided by Star Martial Academy pointed to Deputy Headmaster Qi Changling. The Tianjian Bureau rushed to Xishan Province, but Qi Changling had already disappeared. We initially thought the mastermind behind the sale of the Soul Beads was Qi Changling and that he had fled to escape punishment. However, there were still many doubts. Qi Changling didn’t seem like the kind of person who would do such a thing. But with no further leads, the investigation had to be halted. Since these hundred thousand Soul Beads came from Duanmu Qingsuang, he must know who stole them."
"I’m afraid that’s not the most important thing," Yu Ruozhen interjected darkly. "Do you think that big rat hidden in Star Martial Academy would only stoop to petty deeds like selling Soul Beads?"
"Special Envoy, you mean..."
"Chief Cheng, have you forgotten? A major incident occurred at Star Martial Academy. Someone dared to frame Princess Yu Ruoyun. To successfully infiltrate the Nine-layer Pagoda, the rat in Star Martial Academy must be highly placed. Since your Tianjian Bureau has already confirmed that the Duanmu Family once sent diehards to the Nine-layer Pagoda to assassinate Bai Ji, could the person who set the trap in The Death Valley also be him?"
Wang Lan’s eyes glinted with understanding. "It’s highly possible. Even if it wasn’t the same person, there must have been collusion."
"Then what are we waiting for? Arrest Duanmu Qingsuang!" Ming Baiye exclaimed eagerly.
"The Duanmu Family... what a Duanmu Family. After raising a dog for hundreds of years, it finally starts to bite its master. Chief Cheng, for this arrest, let the Tianjian Bureau and the Yu Family act together."