Wu Youren had long suffered at the hands of the Intelligence Bureau. In his eyes, it was his second greatest enemy, behind only the Life-and-Death Knot.
Yet he also knew very well that the Intelligence Bureau was a bona fide intelligence agency; the Life-and-Death Knot wasn't fit to carry its boots.
Taking out Salim had only required him to consider the travel time there and back, whether he could win the fight, and how to erase his tracks.
The Intelligence Bureau was different. They were professionals, and who knew what manner of image-capturing or sound-recording tricks they possessed?
Salim's death could be pinned on the barbarians, but if someone from the Intelligence Bureau was killed, the room for speculation would be vastly greater.
"The Intelligence Bureau? Mere rabble," the horned owl replied without hesitation. "Speak up, who do you want dead?"
"Whoever holds a saber that looks most like my old one," Wu Youren said without hesitation. "Be careful of the Intelligence Bureau's tricks."
"Bullshit tricks," Chen Quanxu scoffed with utter disdain. "With that little skill, I've killed double digits of them!"
'And that's why you're reduced to this...' The youth didn't want to provoke him. "Just find one that's close enough. No need to make a big scene."
"True." The horned owl nodded. "Rest tonight. I'll go take a look for you."
"Don't!" Hearing this, Wu Youren reacted a bit sharply. "We go together!"
"Relax, I won't draw Guizu aura over to you this time," Chen Quanxu muttered under his breath. "Where's the trust between partners?"
"You just ruined that trust!" The youth rolled his eyes. "Since you're so formidable, why not help me collect a debt?"
After listening, the horned owl shook its head speechlessly. "Just that scrap of worthless trash, and you're still obsessing over it? Focus more on proper business."
"Am I that petty?" Wu Youren retorted testily. "It's mainly that it rubs me the wrong way."
"Fine." The horned owl reached behind itself, drew out a leather pouch, and tossed it before him. "Here's your orange seed."
'I don't think I even pushed you for it.' The youth took it. "Not hunting Guizu anytime soon?"
"In another three to five days, the aura will be completely gone," Chen Quanxu replied calmly. "Rest for two days first. You wouldn't want to draw out Divine Might, would you?"
'Already gone?' The youth was speechless. According to what the man had said before, it should have lasted more than half a month.
That meant too much had been used yesterday! Wu Youren figured it made sense; creating such a massive commotion couldn't have come cheap.
He opened the pouch and peered inside, but couldn't sense any change in the orange seed.
However, that faint wisp of black seemed to have lightened slightly.
Then he promptly pulled the pouch's drawstring tight. "Could it really draw out Divine Might?"
The horned owl fell silent, and only after a while asked in return, "What kind of existence would it take to corrupt an ability master into a Guizu?"
Forget it, Wu Youren decided not to dwell on it. Then something struck him. "Shoot, Xiao Ha..."
Shut inside the cellar for half a night and most of a day, the little snow harrier had actually been sleeping the whole time.
Yet the moment the cellar hatch opened, it woke immediately, flapping its wings in a bid to fly out while chirping noisily.
Unfortunately, the cellar was over a meter deep. It was still a fledgling after all, bumping against the pit walls repeatedly, unable to fly out.
"No chirping!" The youth looked at it flatly. Seeing that it wouldn't obey, he closed the hatch again.
This snow harrier had the potential to grow into a spirit, so its intelligence shouldn't be lacking. He had already attempted some moderate training earlier.
There would be plenty of battles ahead, and if the little fellow recklessly made noise out of ignorance, it would cause huge trouble.
Before Xiao Ha had pulled off that massive feat, Wu Youren had thought that if he couldn't train it properly, he might have to wring its neck in battle.
Now, however, the training efforts had to be doubled—absolutely mandatory.
Mm, not for the sake of the orange seed, but purely out of respect for every living life.
However, Xiao Ha had suffered a massive scare this time and was starving, making it even harder to train than usual.
Alternating between intimidation and bribery, Wu Youren kept training it until nightfall, not even noticing when the horned owl left.
Only when dawn broke the next day did Chen Quanxu return.
The main reason was the chaos currently gripping the wasteland; the horned owl had drawn out Guizu aura, and the breach created by the surge still hadn't been fully sealed.
Yet Chen Quanxu merely glossed over the turmoil without saying more.
After a full night's effort, he had located three spots with Intelligence Bureau personnel, but found no one matching Sister Hua's characteristics.
"Forget it then." The youth didn't have much of an obsession with it. "Is there a suitable saber?"
"No shortage of those," the horned owl replied. "I've checked—we could easily steal one anywhere. Weren't you looking for revenge?"
"No rush." Wu Youren shook his head. "Steal a saber first, and I'll escort you back to Tianjing."
Instructor Hong had forbidden him from entering the city center, but it didn't matter; he could just temporarily bury his wristwatch, just like the Guard Captain's.
The real issue was how much importance Chen Quanxu placed on the Shadow-Splitting Yue. If he let a horned owl carry it back, what if something went wrong along the way?
The horned owl didn't refuse either. "Then I'll steal one for you tonight, and we'll leave under cover of darkness."
His methods were truly convenient; not long after dark, he swiped a saber and returned.
Wu Youren could finally understand why Chen Quanxu was never short on money.
With horned owls and rats at his disposal, how could he ever be strapped for cash?
Were he not bound by his obsession, living a life of indulgence and luxury in Liang would be no challenge at all for him.
Setting out on his motorcycle, the youth originally wanted the horned owl to perch on his other shoulder.
Chen Quanxu, however, stated that an aerial view was superior and gave a broader range of perception.
Taking five hours, the motorcycle arrived at the city outskirts just as dawn was approaching.
Finding a small grove of trees, Wu Youren cast Sand and Stone Technique to excavate a pit, wheeling the motorcycle inside to hide it.
Then he watched the horned owl fly off toward the downtown area.
There were checkpoints on the roads leading into the city, and Wu Youren's identity couldn't withstand scrutiny, so he had to leap over roadside houses before daybreak to sneak in.
He had no interest in seeing where the horned owl flew; this time, he simply wanted to wander around alone.
The youth crouched in a corner of a wall until daybreak, blending into the crowd once more pedestrians appeared on the street.
There were breakfast stalls along the roadside. Browsing several of them, he was surprised to discover one selling stuffed pancakes.
Pancakes wrapped around meat... this way of eating was quite rare, accompanied by piping hot broth filled with dough slices.
Regardless of the taste, this was the first time since transmigrating that he had eaten at a roadside stall.
Eating at an unhurried pace, he strolled through Tianjing, wondering whether to head over to the place the Guard Captain had mentioned to make contact.
Suddenly, a faint clamor arose ahead, along with the sound of musical instruments playing.
Wu Youren wasn't one to chase crowds, but rarely getting a taste of ordinary mortal life, he decided to take a look from afar.
Drawing closer to inquire, he learned that the son of a local household had awakened!
In Tianjing, let alone awakening as an apprentice ability master, even advancing to knight was an enormous affair.
It was true for common households, and just as true for nobility; it was thoroughly worth hosting a grand banquet.
Don't talk about knights walking everywhere or apprentices being cheaper than dogs—surely there were fewer promotion ceremonies for knights than there were weddings, right?
This family had a bit of wealth as well. Beyond entertaining guests at home, they had set up a running banquet along the street to celebrate for three whole days.
Neighbors ate for free, and any passerby offering an auspicious word could eat their fill.
Only the poorly dressed were kept out, though come nightfall, they might still manage to scrounge some leftovers.
For common folk, awakening meant leaping up social strata—and not necessarily just by a single rung. Holding an extravagant celebration was completely natural.
Wu Youren had originally planned just to glance from afar, but... it was actually related to an ability master?
Then he had to take a closer look. He followed the flow of people forward.
The so-called running banquet was really just ordinary meat congee, some staple foods, and cheap alcohol.
Still, meat and alcohol without requiring a gift—given the current state of Liang, this was hardly stingy.
Only someone truly taking a meteoric rise up the ladder would be willing to spend so lavishly.
Wu Youren fell in line and approached the middle-aged man managing things.
Cupping his hands, he was about to offer a few words of blessing when the man raised an eyebrow. "How should I address you, friend?"
None of the people ahead were asked... The youth froze for a moment before replying with a smile, "I'm from out of town, just here to share in the good fortune."
'I'm just freeloading some food and drink, could you stop asking?'
Yet the middle-aged man shook his head, sizing him up from head to toe. "With your status, you can't sit with them... Inside the courtyard, please."
One couldn't blame him for judging by appearance. Not only was Wu Youren handsome, but he also carried a long saber across his back and a scimitar at his waist.
Those two bladed weapons alone were far beyond what an ordinary family could afford.
To say nothing of the bird perched on his shoulder; though it didn't look fully grown, it was definitely a bird of prey.
Although the youth was on the slender side, it was clearly because he was young and hadn't filled out yet.
The middle-aged man had seen bankrupt freeloaders showing off weapons to scrounge free meals before—there were several in the courtyard right now that they couldn't turn away.
Yet this one had outright stated he was only here to join the fun, with no intention of entering the courtyard.
That definitely wouldn't do! The middle-aged man thought to himself, 'I'm not blind!'
If the youth had pestered him to get into the courtyard, he might have hesitated and weighed the situation.
Yet he didn't care about that treatment at all. What did that mean?
At worst, he might be down on his luck; at best, he truly was just here to join the festivities!
For the host family on the cusp of prosperity, what mattered most?
Blessings and well-wishes were child's play; the key was expanding connections and avoiding grudges!
The youth might not care, but he couldn't afford to be discourteous. "The crowd out here is rough; the courtyard is far more pleasant!"
Wu Youren was rather speechless. He had only come to take in the flavor of ordinary life. "I don't know the host."
"Alright now, young man," the middle-aged man said impatiently, giving him a gentle shove forward. "Would it hurt you to make the acquaintance of a future ability master?"
In a daze of confusion, Wu Youren was pushed right into the courtyard.
The courtyard wasn't small, spanning well over ten thousand square meters, with a three-story building further in.
It wasn't noon yet, but tables were already laid out across the courtyard—roughly a hundred of them.
Some had already taken seats, while even more were standing around, looking on and chatting.
Seeing a gift registry table in the distance, Wu Youren walked over and gave two silver dollars as a courtesy gift.
Since he had been ushered in, he might as well contribute; he had no desire to cause trouble. "Put down Liu Jingming."
Chapter 202