"Absurd!"
Liang Chengyun barked sharply, "Terminate this investigation at once!"
Lu Zhao gave an even firmer reply: "Please issue that order as an official written directive, Sir. Otherwise, your demand constitutes a disciplinary violation."
Xu Zhenhua and his two companions listened in absolute shock.
Accusing the Commander of the General Security Bureau? The waters had truly flooded the Dragon King's temple—the world was turning upside down.
With so many leaders suspended from duty over recent days, functionaries across the Federation knew full well that a ferocious struggle was raging in Fangshi. Xu Zhenhua had even come into contact with matters regarding smuggling, and his sole purpose today was to relieve his superior of grief and trouble.
Originally, Xu Zhenhua had assumed Lu Zhao was merely a blade in the hands of some other prominent figure. Looking at him now, the man seemed to disregard friend and foe alike, operating entirely as a faction unto himself.
Otherwise, how would he dare dress down a commander from the General Security Bureau?
A long silence stretched over the line. Liang Chengyun did not erupt into the anticipated fury.
"Look out for yourself then."
With that, the call clicked off.
Facing off against two figures of regular executive rank within a single day, Lu Zhao remained undefeated.
Looking down at the three Special Counter-Terrorism men, he asked, "Do you three wish to continue?"
Xu Zhenhua and his partners no longer possessed the strength or will to resist, utterly beaten into submission.
Struggling to sit up, Xu Zhenhua hurriedly waved his hands as he saw Lu Zhao preparing to kick out again. "No more fighting, no more fighting! We're all colleagues here—there's no need to take it this far."
"That wasn't what you were saying at the beginning."
Lu Zhao had no intention of continuing to strike.
From the very start, he had seen right through them: this man had never planned to put in genuine effort for his superior.
If he were truly loyal, he would have masked his face and charged in to kill, rather than setting ground rules before throwing a punch.
Neither guns nor divine powers had been drawn; a single glance revealed he was merely going through the motions to fulfill his assignment.
Outside, the 'unrestricted brawl' was gradually winding down.
In a massive group fight, it was hard to tell who won or lost, but at the very least, the border defense soldiers had held their line and prevented the main body of police officers from barging in.
Lu Zhao did not detain Xu Zhenhua, as doing so would turn it into unlawful detention and give his adversaries an opening to strike back.
Why did political infighting in the Federation always strain without snapping? Because whoever broke the boundaries first became a criminal, easily marked for humane destruction.
Internal struggles were like boxing matches: bound by all kinds of rules, where even throwing a punch required gloves.
With the farce concluded, Lu Zhao returned once again to the detention cell.
Inside, Lü Jinshan craned his neck toward the window, looking as though he were praying for someone to rescue him.
When he caught sight of Lu Zhao's handsome face, his entire expression slumped.
Lu Zhao pushed the door open and asked, "Very disappointed?"
Lü Jinshan offered no reply.
Though Lu Zhao had never tortured him, if he ever got foul-mouthed, the guarding soldiers possessed ample means to shut him up.
"Come out. I'll give you another chance to redeem your crimes through merit."
Hearing that, Lü Jinshan shuddered and asked, "Haven't I already helped you accuse the city executive?"
"Did the city executive orchestrate all of this single-handedly?" Lu Zhao countered. "It takes two hands to clap. Without officials large and small acting in collusion, this entire supply chain of yours could never have operated.
"For instance, I haven't settled the score with you yet over embezzling the border defense station's life supplements."
Lü Jinshan lowered his head again in silence.
He was no longer surprised by how Lu Zhao knew such things, nor did the man's sheer madness shock him any longer.
He had grown entirely numb.
This inquiry was aimed straight at Fangshi's transit control, security inspection, and a host of other officials of every rank. Lü Jinshan needed only to state how the contraband entered the city, and anyone with eyes could see who had accepted bribes.
Lü Jinshan could choose not to answer, but Lu Zhao would rattle off names—his second uncle, his nephew, his uncle by blood...
Over the years, the Lü family had profited handsomely by riding on his coattails. He could either let his relatives become scapegoats or name the officials involved.
The latter meant at least a life sentence.
Lü Jinshan was an old Nanhai native with deeply rooted clan loyalty, naturally unwilling to make his own relatives take the fall for outsiders. If he died in prison, his kin could at least look after his children.
As for Zhao De, once Lü Jinshan had accused him to save his own life, there was no turning back.
By the time the interrogation wrapped up, darkness had settled over the sky.
"Mr. Lü, thank you for your cooperation."
Lu Zhao smiled, finding Lü Jinshan's chubby face considerably more pleasant to look at.
Beside them, Xu Fang's scalp prickled as she recorded the testimony. Lu Zhao truly meant to tear everything out by the roots, eliminating every corrupt official regardless of rank.
Lu Zhao instructed, "Take this evidence and submit it to the Nanhai Circuit Politics Bureau as well. File charges against Wang Tong, commander of the Special Counter-Terrorism detachment."
"Yes, Sir."
Xu Fang turned and left without another word, carrying out her duty like an automaton stripped of self-will.
Even now, the higher-ups had not transferred Lu Zhao away. She was entirely unable to decipher the grander situation; her only choice was to follow the rules.
Next, Lu Zhao made two tactical arrangements. First, he summoned Liu Qiang and sent him to stake out the municipal administration building to keep track of Zhao De's general movements.
He did not require pinpoint intelligence, only enough to prove when Zhao De was away from his office so that the man would have no alibi if needed.
Second, he positioned firepower squads across the police station and surrounding high ground, establishing twenty-four-hour rotating shifts.
He could not rule out the possibility that someone might throw caution to the wind and launch a masked raid on the station—
Such as Fangshi's lone third-rank superhuman.
Lu Zhao's military coursework at Dijing University had taught that the only way for the weak to prevail against a higher-rank superhuman was attrition.
A third-rank superhuman could effectively ward off ordinary bullets, but could not withstand heavy machine guns, grenades, rockets, and other heavy firepower head-on. They had to maneuver, dodge, and flank, which consumed massive amounts of thermal energy.
Elevated fire points could keep the enemy constantly pinned down.
Even after arranging everything within his power, the police station still could not reliably stop Zhao De; the man could simply bypass everything to target the Lü brothers.
Silencing them was far simpler.
Yet Lu Zhao never counted on physically intercepting him. Every divine power bore its own distinct traits; he only needed Zhao De to expose his movements.
Even if he lost the Lü brothers, he would gain another piece of leverage.
With all the preparations completed, Lu Zhao enjoyed a rare moment of respite. He closed his eyes to rest his mind and review the situation.
"Harness the momentum; make others move to your pace. Do not dream of settling everything in a single blow; merely exert maximum influence within the local sphere."
Through practical application, he had finally gained some insight into the political craft his teacher had imparted.
Do not judge success or failure purely by winning or losing; do not judge the future purely by temporary success or failure.
For instance, if Zhao De, a third-rank superhuman, were to force his way into the station, Lu Zhao could not stop him; so rather than clashing head-on, he would pivot to securing leverage over him.
Clearing away stray thoughts, Lu Zhao sat cross-legged on the floor, closing his eyes to run his method for refining spirit.
Political craft was merely a technique in the end; it could never replace substantial violence.
Life-force development had to be practiced, and psychic development had to advance in step.
He had already comprehended three of the five senses through Visualization. Once hearing and sight were breached one after another, inner and outer forms would unite as one, achieving completeness in the first rank.
His psychic strength would step into the second rank ahead of his physical body, thereby breaking through the physical limits encountered when advancing in life-force development.
His teacher had once said that in ancient times, life cultivation always drove nature cultivation, because the physical body relied on precious medicines to break through bottlenecks, while the soul could rely only on personal enlightenment.
Lu Zhao did the reverse, seeking to let the soul drive the body.
***
Meanwhile, Lin Zhiyan returned to her hotel room.
Imagining the pillow on the bed as Lu Zhao, she punched and kicked it relentlessly.
Only after venting all her fury did her mind slowly cool down, her brow knitting tightly.
"What on earth is he doing?"
If this was merely for revenge, it was far too short-sighted.
Toppling Zhao De would only cost the Chen family a capable lieutenant—it would hardly wound them to the bone. Meanwhile, Lu Zhao had pushed himself entirely into the open, exposed to the enemy's gaze.
From now on, without someone to shield him, Lu Zhao would find it virtually impossible to survive in Nanhai Circuit.
And if he had placed his hopes on her, he wouldn't have quarreled with her just now.
He wanted to leave. He planned to walk away from Nanhai Circuit.
The most probable way for him to do so was through independent career selection as a second-rank superhuman—the only path that allowed one to carry over rank and credentials without relying on regular promotions or transfers.
Perhaps from the very beginning, he had intended to risk everything in a desperate gamble.
Chapter 79