Chapter 83: The One And Only Opportunity In This Lifetime!
“This… is also a helpless solution.” Zhang Hongbo said helplessly, steeling himself.
He was already prepared to be blamed by Xia Hanshi, but the other party just said lightly:
“Good, do as you say. In my name, send letters to the nearest few cities around, and have each dispatch some manpower to help.”
He actually agreed?
Yang Yan and Gu Bing were both stunned. This was thankless work.
Even if manpower was dispatched and they really found clues, if major casualties occurred in the subsequent cleanup, it would still be hard to explain.
Zhang Hongbo was also shocked, but then he showed excitement.
Su Chen watching from the side saw clearly that after this, the leadership of those other cities would naturally be dissatisfied, and the bad reputation would fall on Xia Hanshi again.
Old Xia knew these things, but as long as he could kill the Cult of the Strange God, he didn’t care. This was his core principle. Su Chen thought to himself, Old Xia really hates them.
Looking at Zhang Hongbo, whose expression was excited and who was already preparing to send the letters, Su Chen thought to himself: Old Zhang, Old Zhang, we’ve already let go of the last matter.
But this time, it’s not my fault. Blame yourself for not watching your step.
Immediately after, he coughed lightly. Seeing that he had drawn everyone’s attention, he said: “Not long ago, I heard Sun Tai mention some clues that might help with the search.”
“How about we check this clue first?”
“Sun Tai again?” Zhang Hongbo stamped his foot, sensing something off, and frowned: “He’s just from the Internal Affairs Section. How does he have so many informants? His clues are even more than those from the Patrol Section and Investigation Section.”
“Who knows?” Su Chen shrugged.
Xia Hanshi glanced at him meaningfully: “Then call that little fatty over.”
And so, Sun Tai, who had just returned to his office, was hesitating whether to quickly report the news of his home being burglarized to his old boss far away in the ruins.
Before he could decide, he received the order and hurried back here again.
“Chief Judge, Special Envoy, City Lord, Little Brother Su…” After entering, Sun Tai greeted them one by one and stood to the side, muttering inwardly.
When he saw Su Chen’s encouraging gaze, he felt even stranger.
“Sun Tai, Su Chen says you have clues about the Cult of the Strange God?” Zhang Hongbo asked first, resuming his City Lord dignity.
“Clues?” Sun Tai’s heart skipped a beat as he immediately thought of that letter he didn’t know who had stuffed in, and the back of his head went numb.
“This, this…” Sun Tai’s eyes darted around, not daring to meet Zhang Hongbo’s gaze.
How was he supposed to say it? Say that your younger brother is colluding with the Cult of the Strange God?
With this City Lord right in front of him, it was hard to say whether he truly didn’t know or was pretending not to.
“Deliberately concealing matters about the Cult of the Strange God is a grave offense.” Xia Hanshi said indifferently, making Sun Tai’s fat tremble all over.
But immediately, Su Chen added: “Brother Sun, if we really find something, it’ll be great merit.”
He was certain they would find it. Su Chen was now sure that thing was still in the Trade General Warehouse.
Xia Hanshi didn’t speak.
Sun Tai’s mind raced. I already told Little Brother Su about that letter, so why doesn’t he say it directly?
Afraid of offending Zhang Hongbo?
No, Little Brother Su isn’t that kind of person, and now he’s already the Chief Judge’s student. He couldn’t possibly be afraid.
Moreover, with unverified information like this, how would Little Brother Su mention it in front of so many big shots? He’s clearly not reckless.
Clues about the Cult of the Strange God… How did that letter get delivered to my home…
Merit… merit… great merit…
Sun Tai’s mind spun rapidly, vaguely feeling that this might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
He had to decide whether to take a big gamble.
If he won, the rewards would be unimaginable.
But if he lost, the consequences would probably be hard for him to bear.
“Sun Tai!” Zhang Hongbo raised his voice considerably. He was already in a bad mood, and seeing the other hesitating as if wanting to speak but stopping, he grew even more displeased.
“Yes…” Sun Tai responded subconsciously. His subconscious had already made the decision for him, and he blurted out: “I do have a clue, but it’s unverified, so I didn’t dare to speak carelessly.”
“Speak!” Zhang Hongbo said sternly. “Say whatever you know. Whether it’s useful or not, we’ll verify it!”
Sun Tai lowered his head, looking at his belly, his voice trembling faintly. “According to the intel, a few days ago, something seemed to have followed the trade team into the general warehouse, and it’s related to the Cult of the Strange God.”
“Trade General Warehouse?”
Zhang Hongbo’s expression changed immediately. He subconsciously looked at Su Chen, then stared at Sun Tai, his voice cold: “Where did the intel come from?”
“This… from an informant. He’s already dead. This was his last message before dying.” Sun Tai steeled himself.
Since he had already pointed it out, he couldn’t say the source was a letter stuffed into his home. Might as well make it dead without proof.
Yang Yan and Gu Bing exchanged a subtle glance, seeming suspicious.
“Your informant is really impressive.” By the last three words, Zhang Hongbo was already gritting his teeth.
“Your reaction is off.” Xia Hanshi’s eyes fixed on Zhang Hongbo.
“The person in charge of the Trade General Warehouse is Zhang Feng, the City Lord’s younger brother.” Gu Bing said timely. They had some understanding of these basic situations.
“No wonder…” Xia Hanshi realized, a chilling smile appearing on his face.
Was this slander or revenge?
Zhang Hongbo couldn’t help thinking that after so long of secret investigations by his subordinates, there was no evidence pointing to the trade repository. No matter how he looked at it, it seemed like Yuan Chenyang…
No… He was suddenly alarmed.
Perhaps it wasn’t that the investigation yielded no results, but that his subordinates hadn’t investigated at all!
Yuan Chenyang, who had been investigating with great fanfare, had been gotten rid of by him. At least it appeared that way on the surface.
If that was the case, who would dare touch his younger brother?
If something was really found, how would he explain it?
What if…
Zhang Hongbo felt a chill in his heart but forced himself to stay calm and quickly issued orders: “First, deploy the Exploration, City Patrol, and Inspection guards to surround the Trade General Warehouse. Don’t let anyone escape.”
“No…” Xia Hanshi interrupted abruptly, looking at him coldly. “Don’t use Nan Feng’s people. Just the four of us will go.”
Zhang Hongbo’s expression was very unsightly, knowing he was temporarily not trusted.
If they found something, this distrust wouldn’t be temporary; there would even be more serious consequences.
“You and this little fatty stay here first. Don’t run around.” Xia Hanshi instructed.
“Understood.” Su Chen nodded and couldn’t help saying: “Be careful.”
He emphasized again: “Be very careful!”
He was certain there was something big in the Trade General Warehouse, but Xia Hanshi didn’t know yet and might think it was just a hideout, at most guarding against that priest.
These two reminders would at least make Old Xia more vigilant.
The four left from the rooftop and quickly headed toward the Trade General Warehouse, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
“Little Brother…”
Beside him, Sun Tai’s hefty figure trembled in the cold wind on the rooftop. “Do you think they can find traces?”
“I don’t know why, but I have a feeling there might really be something to gain.” Su Chen gazed at the sprawling lights of thousands of homes below and said faintly.
Hearing him say that, Sun Tai’s expression eased a bit. He pursed his lips, seeming to want to say something.
But then he closed his mouth, opened it again, closed it again, and after repeating this a few times, he said softly: “Little Brother, I sleep lightly.”
Su Chen looked at him in surprise and grinned lightly: “Don’t worry. From now on, no one should disturb Brother’s sleep anymore.”
Beyond Sun Tai’s expectation, and even Su Chen’s, they didn’t have to wait long—just over half an hour in the cold wind.
Boom!
In the direction where Xia Hanshi and the others had gone, a golden fire dragon soared into the sky, coiling in the firmament and scattering meteor-like fire rain.
There was also pervasive mist, and a huge Heituo phantom rising into the air. Even from this distance, it was still clearly visible.
“Old Xia…” Su Chen’s expression turned solemn instantly. They were fighting.
“That… that’s…” Sun Tai’s throat bobbed, incredulous: “There really is something?”
Su Chen subtly glanced at Old Sun’s horrified face and switched to “Heituo Follower” mode, his expression changing slightly.
His gaze shifted accordingly. That thing had run away.
………
“…They were indeed preparing to summon Heituo here in Nan Feng.” Xia Hanshi’s expression was very unsightly. His tree-bark-like hand stroked the floating flame dragon head beside him, his pupils like ghostly ghostfire.
Yang Yan and Gu Bing were panting heavily, standing behind him. In the distance were piles of metal containers.
The surroundings were an open area with many corpses lying around. In the center was a large pit scattered with fragments of containers.
Zhang Hongbo staggered to his feet, his usually calm face drained of color.
“Heituo Statue! It’s actually a Heituo Statue!” Gu Bing gritted her teeth. “The resources invested by the Heituo Followers are too great!”
The priest’s appearance had already shocked them, but the Heituo Statue was even more terrifying. This was a true “Divine Statue,” extremely precious.
“Priest, Heituo Statue, all hidden here. It’s really become a ghost nest…” Xia Hanshi suppressed his anger.
“I can’t shirk responsibility…” Zhang Hongbo gritted his teeth.
“You have no opportunity left.” Xia Hanshi hadn’t expected to encounter a priest and Heituo Statue just like that.
The Heituo Statue housed Heituo’s powerful strength and true Heituo consciousness, an important pillar for summoning the Heituo carrier.
With this thing, the time and process for summoning the Heituo carrier would be greatly shortened.
But the manufacturing process was extremely difficult. Other Strange Gods rarely used such things, let alone Heituo.
“City Lord, you can’t do it.” Xia Hanshi was merciless, killing intent leaking from his eyes: “Whether your whole family lives or dies depends on whether you’re willing to sever ties for the greater good.”
Yang Yan and Gu Bing rarely agreed, thinking that even if there were clues here, it would just be a few small fries.
Because the clue came too easily, they didn’t even think a priest would be there. Unexpectedly, they faced the priest and Heituo Statue head-on.
Without Xia Hanshi, they would already be corpses.
“I…” Zhang Hongbo’s expression fluctuated several times. The City Lord position was gone without warning, his ambitions and power all for naught.
The dramatic ups and downs, even with his mindset, made it hard to stay calm. His head spun, nearly fainting.
But in the end, he suppressed his emotions and nodded solemnly: “Understood!”
Not long after, Xia Hanshi and the others returned, but Zhang Hongbo was nowhere to be seen. He called Su Chen into the office and solemnly instructed him:
“For this period, don’t go anywhere. Just stay here.”
