Chapter 148: Layers Of Fog
“Still in the Court of Justice?”
Chong Jingtian’s eyes flashed with sharp light, then he heard Lei Tieyan continue:
“I surveyed the scene and found that it broke through from the inside. Although the actions were quick, not all the guards were killed, and several were seriously injured.”
“This shows that the strength used by the other side wasn’t that strong. It would be very difficult to leave without a sound.”
“Right…” Chong Jingtian pondered for a moment and expressed agreement. “Most of the strength was focused on the execution area. There were several priests there, and Strange Artifacts were used. With you stationed here in the Court of Justice and the protective barrier in place, making too much noise would make it harder to leave.”
“Those who came to snatch the corpse must not be that strong.”
There were actually several priests taking action at the same time over there.
Su Chen was quite surprised. It seemed that the thing possessing Meng Qi was very powerful, able to mobilize such strong forces.
He stood by the side, with little presence.
But although Chong Jingtian and Lei Tieyan had constructed an energy barrier to prevent the sound from spreading, they didn’t avoid him, clearly thinking he was qualified to listen.
“Killed several priests…” Lei Tieyan was also surprised and thoughtful: “It seems this was premeditated for a long time. Killing Wei Yinshuo and snatching the corpse— it looks like it was all led by Faceless Ghost Followers.”
Lei Tieyan believed these two incidents were for the same purpose, happening one after the other, so he couldn’t help but think that way.
“Right, this must be a big fish.”
Chong Jingtian’s gaze was cold, flashing with a trace of barely perceptible worry. “It can detach from Meng Qi’s body and possess again. Something with that ability must have borrowed divine power. Ordinary priests might not be enough.”
“A shell that can be disguised almost perfectly must have come at a high cost to create.”
He faintly regretted it. He shouldn’t have researched that corpse; he should have destroyed it directly. But his original intention was to find some clues, a way to counter detection, in case such a thing appeared again.
“What about Wei Yinshuo?” Lei Tieyan hesitated. “Why was he assassinated? Did he grasp some secret?”
Chong Jingtian couldn’t figure it out either and could only speculate simply. “As for old Wei, it might have been done in passing, conveniently weakening our strength.”
He said helplessly: “The key is, why did old Wei send everyone around him away before dying? Hopefully… we can find clues from the people who snatched the corpse.”
Lei Tieyan was thoughtful and then said: “Normal Faceless Ghost Followers are one thing, but that Meng Qi—his disguise is too terrifying. If he turns into someone else, it’ll be like a drop in the ocean…”
“That’s exactly what I’m worried about.” Chong Jingtian also felt hidden concern. The Court of Justice was too big; no one could monitor every corner without pause.
Once Meng Qi turned into someone else, there would be no way to investigate. It was truly terrifying.
“Chief, Judge Lei…” The silent Su Chen beside them suddenly spoke. “I think there’s no need to worry so much.”
“Oh?” Both looked over at the same time.
“His disguise is powerful, but it shouldn’t be without flaws. Otherwise, he could have disguised himself as Chu Xuan.” Su Chen explained:
“At that time, Chu Xuan’s death caused a big commotion. If he could disguise as Chu Xuan, perhaps he wouldn’t have been discovered by Senior Brother Teng.”
“Makes sense.” Chong Jingtian thought carefully and deeply agreed. “I hadn’t noticed that. Right, if he could disguise as Chu Xuan, probably no one would have discovered him by now.”
“His near-perfect disguise should have flaws.”
“In that case…” Chong Jingtian pondered briefly and looked at Su Chen again. “I’ll leave this matter to you. Do you have confidence in finding him?”
“Leave it to me?” Su Chen subconsciously wanted to refuse, but when the words reached his lips, he showed a hesitant expression.
Easier said than done. The Court of Justice was so big; finding that guy wouldn’t be simple.
Moreover, his speculation was just theory. No one could say for sure if that guy had other means.
Unless there were clues. Su Chen thought of something that might kill two birds with one stone.
“What’s wrong?” Chong Jingtian frowned. He had observed Su Chen; he had perseverance, could endure boredom, had high talent, and wasn’t arrogant. Overall, he was very satisfied.
Although his background had some issues, the information had been altered, and in a few years, no one would say anything.
He was just too “lazy”—not lazy in the normal sense, but indifferent to other things.
Last time he defeated Chu Xuan in one go, it was because the other party provoked him on the spot. Later, capturing the Heituo Priest was also because Jiang Shumo wanted to use them as bait.
A couple of days ago, he took the initiative to visit Wei Yinshuo, which pleased him, thinking the kid was finally willing to win people over. But now, asking him to handle something, he seemed to be showing his lazy side again.
“I’m afraid I can’t take on this task.” Su Chen smiled bitterly. “If I can’t find him, won’t it delay important matters?”
“Those who achieve great things don’t hesitate like this.” Chong Jingtian scolded dissatisfiedly. “When the time comes, just do your best. Do what you can and leave the rest to fate.”
Hesitating? Wei Yinshuo gave a thumbs up in his mind.
Su Chen’s thoughts wandered, he took a deep breath, restrained his expression, and pretended to be deeply moved. “I will remember the Chief’s lesson. In that case, I will do my best to find him.”
“However, I hope the Chief will allow me to view some information on the Faceless Ghost.”
Seeing that he had finally come to his senses, Chong Jingtian nodded satisfiedly. “Good, that’s more like it. I will grant you access to view Faceless Ghost information.”
“Additionally.” Chong Jingtian continued: “I plan to temporarily station ordinary Judges outside the city. Unless necessary, they shouldn’t return to the Court of Justice for now.”
He also knew that finding Meng Qi wasn’t as simple as it seemed on the surface; he could only try to reduce interference.
“The Court of Justice interior remains under strict alert, with uninterrupted patrols twenty-four hours a day.”
“At the same time, every Judge inside, unless necessary, is not allowed to go out. They must go to the Adjudication Department every morning and evening for Follower screening.”
Finally, Chong Jingtian said: “I’ll assign a batch of people to you.”
“Can Senior Brother Teng Liang be released?” Su Chen asked. “He fought Meng Qi before; it might have some special effect.”
“Special effect…” Chong Jingtian chuckled, understanding Su Chen’s idea.
However, Meng Qi had long been confirmed problematic, Teng Liang had been imprisoned for several months, and the storm had mostly subsided, so he could be released.
“Then release him.” Chong Jingtian looked at Lei Tieyan, who nodded.
“Then I’ll go check the scene first…” Su Chen turned and headed to the Research Department.
Watching Su Chen leave, Chong Jingtian looked at the ruined Medical Department before him. Meng Qi’s corpse was just one matter; Wei Yinshuo’s death also needed to be clarified.
“Chief…”
The Judge whom Lei Tieyan had sent earlier to survey the surroundings returned and reported: “Nearby surveillance found nothing. A surveillance camera seven hundred meters from the Medical Department was damaged, around ten minutes before the explosion.”
“Uncertain if it was coincidental.”
“No one sent to check?” Lei Tieyan frowned.
“We did. When the repair personnel arrived, you were already here.” The Judge said.
“Don’t count on these things.” Chong Jingtian shook his head, clearly holding no hope. Surveillance cameras weren’t living things; they couldn’t use Mental Power Detection. High-order Professionals could easily bypass them.
Lei Tieyan knew that too; he was just trying to find clues.
Not long after, several figures hurried back, led by Xue Fei.
Looking at the Medical Department that was now mostly ruins, Xue Fei was dumbfounded.
I was only gone for a short while—how did the Medical Department end up like this?
Where’s that old guy Wei Yinshuo?
Xue Fei reacted, his whole body tensing, his vision darkening as Chong Jingtian and Lei Tieyan were already in front of him.
“Chief, this… what happened?” Xue Fei asked urgently.
“We’re just about to ask why you weren’t here guarding.” Chong Jingtian was cold.
“Chief Judge Wei told us to go support you.” Xue Fei was flustered but barely kept calm, explaining the situation at the time.
The several people following behind him also nodded repeatedly.
Lei Tieyan nodded inwardly; it matched what Jiang Baorui said, basically confirming Wei Yinshuo had sent them away on his own.
“What exactly was he trying to do?” Chong Jingtian couldn’t figure it out.
Wei Yinshuo’s purpose must be related to the truth of his death.
“Who did he meet today?” Lei Tieyan added.
“Before we left, he only saw He Kang and Xiao Ying.” Xue Fei hurriedly said.
“Find these two.” Chong Jingtian issued the order.
Not long after, He Kang received the order and returned.
“This… how did the Medical Department become like this?” He Kang was also shocked, his thick eyebrows raised high.
“What did you come to see Chief Judge Wei for today?” Chong Jingtian asked.
“Today… today…” He Kang gathered his thoughts. “Mainly, Xiao Ying hadn’t visited Chief Judge Wei at home recently, so I came with him today to visit.”
“Just visiting?” Lei Tieyan’s gaze was sharp, as if piercing into He Kang’s heart, dissecting him entirely.
“Yes…” He Kang nodded stiffly. “But after discovering the rift outside, I left alone, and Xiao Ying turned back to find Chief Judge Wei.”
“He went back alone?” Lei Tieyan looked at Xue Fei and got an affirmative response.
“I wasn’t in the room at the time, so I don’t know what they said…” Xue Fei’s throat moved.
“Don’t know?” Chong Jingtian’s face was coldly stern. “You’re a Fifth Order Professional, just one wall away. Do you want to hear or not?”
“I didn’t dare to listen.” Xue Fei could only say that. He couldn’t say that Xiao Ying and Wei Yinshuo were discussing how to kill Su Chen.
“Why hasn’t Xiao Ying come yet?” Chong Jingtian withdrew his gaze and questioned his subordinate.
Since Xue Fei wouldn’t say, there was another person.
“Can’t contact him.” The subordinate kept clicking on the virtual screen.
“Can’t contact?” Lei Tieyan’s expression changed slightly. He exchanged a glance with Chong Jingtian and quickly called surveillance personnel.
Sure enough, it was confirmed: after Xiao Ying entered that damaged surveillance area, he vanished without a trace.
Chong Jingtian’s face was cold as ice. “He probably discovered something.”
“Chief, my uncle he exactly…” Xue Fei couldn’t help asking softly.
“Dead.” Chong Jingtian said coldly.
“Dead, died?” Xue Fei’s pupils shook, the man struck hard, his expression dazed.
“How could… how could…”
Although Wei Yinshuo was harsh with words toward him, he was still his backer.
Though he was a Fifth Order Professional, his potential was exhausted; he’d be stuck there for life. Without Wei Yinshuo’s protection, the remaining days would be tough.
His status wasn’t low, but the people he offended had status no lower.
“Xue Fei…” Lei Tieyan pressed his shoulder, the intense pain snapping him back, looking terrified at this “Iron-faced Chief Judge” before him.
“Come with me.” Lei Tieyan gripped him and walked to the distance. Xue Fei didn’t dare resist.
Chong Jingtian withdrew his gaze. At this moment, You Shan finally wrapped up and returned.
After hearing Chong Jingtian’s account, her gaze shifted from shock to grave. After pondering, she suddenly proposed a startling guess:
“Is it possible that Wei Yinshuo did this to meet the infiltrator who came to snatch the corpse?”
Chong Jingtian couldn’t help looking at You Shan. Now in middle age, with light makeup on her face, her youthful charm was still visible in her brows and eyes.
He couldn’t help saying: “You mean Wei Yinshuo colluded with the Cult of the Strange God?”
“Jiang Shumo suspected it after he returned.” You Shan couldn’t help explaining: “This is just a guess. Wei Yinshuo sending away all his guards is indeed very suspicious.”
Soon, Lei Tieyan returned with a grim face, Xue Fei following behind, head down, steps unsteady.
With a casual wave, a wind barrier formed around them. Lei Tieyan shook his head: “He said it was about pulling in Wei Yinshuo to support Wei Yufan, not involved in other matters.”
Chong Jingtian frowned. Though not surprised, this cut off the clue again; he still didn’t know what Wei Yinshuo was really up to.
He sighed: “We can only find clues from that corpse-snatcher.”
“Old Lei, You Shan…” Chong Jingtian said solemnly: “You two, from now on, keep a close eye on the Court of Justice. Don’t miss any clues. Find that guy as soon as possible.”
“Didn’t you assign this task to Su Chen?” Lei Tieyan was puzzled.
Chong Jingtian shook his head: “Just tempering him. We can’t put all our hopes on the kid.”
Fair enough… The two nodded and agreed.
……
At the same time, Su Chen had arrived at the Research Department. This was the internal Research Department of the Court of Justice, looking much more advanced than the Medical Department, already under tight security.
The incident happened on the seventh floor, with many corpses in white coats lying scattered about.
“Has any research been done on these corpses?” Su Chen looked at the sweating temporary Person in Charge of the Research Department.
The Person in Charge explained: “All data is normal, nothing special.”
Su Chen nodded and wandered around the laboratory looking official.
“Something happened?”
A voice suddenly came from behind. Su Chen didn’t even turn his head to know who it was.
