Tian Lingling stroked his bald head, pulled out five banknotes, and handed them back, saying, "My intelligence isn't worth that much. Heh, when I sell information, fairness is what matters."
He lifted his glass, took a sip, smacked his lips, and said, "Last night, Hei Wuchang was taken out by the people from the Songhai Branch. Fu Qingyang led the operation. You already know that."
Aunt Xiaoyuan's voice was aloof. "So Fu Qingyang really was the one who killed him? Who else participated, and where did the battle take place?"
Tian Lingling lit a cigarette, slowly exhaling a dense puff of white smoke. "I don't know the location—haven't tracked it down yet. Songhai is huge, after all. I can't give you the exact details, either. The news I received says that both the Holy Grail and the roster are now in the hands of the Songhai Branch, and they've already assembled manpower to hunt down the Fallen listed on it.
"Also, half an hour ago, the Five Elements Alliance's official forum updated with an announcement. Yuanshi Tianzun, a member of Kangyang District's Team Two in the Songhai Branch, rendered outstanding service in the Holy Grail incident and was awarded a Class A merit..."
Xiaoyuan paid no attention to whatever he said next. She froze as if dazed, motionless for quite a while.
A possibility suddenly struck her: Hei Wuchang hadn't been killed by Fu Qingyang, but by that newcomer named Yuanshi Tianzun.
Unless he had played a pivotal role, being a mere participant would never earn him a Class A merit—that was one of the highest honors in the Five Elements Alliance.
That alone wouldn't have left Xiaoyuan in such a daze. It was just that she suddenly recalled what the kid had said that morning:
*—In this incident, the top credit belongs to me.*
He was Yuanshi Tianzun?
Xiaoyuan had always assumed the kid was just an ordinary official walker, a young man who was a bit lecherous but fundamentally kindhearted.
Never had she imagined that he was actually the rising star of the Five Elements Alliance, whose fame had surged recently and who had appeared on the bounty list.
So it was him. He really had been investigating Hei Wuchang all along and participated in the Holy Grail incident. From the look of it, that soul-corrupting item of his had come from Hei Wuchang... Piecing the various details together, Aunt Xiaoyuan grew increasingly certain of her suspicion.
She would find an opportunity to test him later!
She said indifferently, "I'm very satisfied with your intelligence. Keep an eye out for news regarding Li Xianzong for me. I'll come by regularly."
Right at that moment, from a booth in the corner, a bare-chested man carrying a liquor bottle walked over and sat down beside Aunt Xiaoyuan, greedily eyeing her seductive curves.
Licking his lips, he chuckled lewdly. "Hey babe, want to head over and have some fun?"
Aunt Xiaoyuan turned her head, following the bare-chested man's gesture to look at the corner booth. A broad, muscular back faced the bar, with a pair of legs bobbing over his shoulders.
For evil professions, indulgence was the norm—the desire to kill, the desire to destroy, and lust...
Xiaoyuan withdrew her gaze and said coldly, "Get lost!"
"Tch, in a minute, you'll know just how good I am." The bare-chested man reached toward her delicate shoulder. Suddenly, his breath caught, and he began to cough violently.
His face flushed red with coughing, and beads of black blood seeped from his pores.
Tian Lingling took a sip of liquor and reminded her, "No killing on my turf."
Aunt Xiaoyuan gave a cold snort, rose from the bar, and vanished into the stairwell, her trench coat fluttering.
After several minutes, the bare-chested man stopped coughing. Covered in a film of black blood, he gasped for air.
Tian Lingling mocked, "That woman is a thorny rose. Even I wouldn't dare mess with her lightly."
The man ground his teeth. "If I get the chance, I'll tie her up and play with her however I want."
Tian Lingling burst out laughing. "Remember to call me when the time comes."
"Naturally! I definitely won't forget you, Brother Tian. We'll enjoy her together."
"I meant call me over to collect your corpse."
As they spoke, footsteps came from the stairs. A young man wearing a black tank top and camouflage pants appeared in the underground bar.
He was rather handsome, with sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, standing tall and straight. His robust physique filled out the tank top, and he twirled a silver butterfly knife in his hand.
"Long time no see, Uncle Tian."
Flipping the butterfly knife, the young man sat down before the bar.
Tian Lingling glanced at the arrogant young man and said, "Just now, a Witch Doctor at the Saint stage was inquiring about you. It's not clear whether she's hostile yet, but watch out."
Tian Lingling was a Bewitching Demon and, like Li Xianzong, a member of the Soldier Master Sect. However, Tian Lingling's identity was kept confidential, and he posed outwardly as a wild walker.
After Li Xianzong decided to come to Songhai for his trial, the two had already been in contact.
Li Xianzong gave an indifferent grunt. "The intelligence I asked you to gather—how did it go?"
Tian Lingling snapped his fingers. The bartender wiping glasses by the liquor cabinet bent down, pulled a stack of documents from the cabinet, and placed it on the counter.
Li Xianzong eagerly took it, opened it, and read carefully.
The very first page bore the bold name: "Yuanshi Tianzun."
Tian Lingling pinched his glass with two fingers, swirling it gently. "Compared to the top four on the bounty list, Yuanshi Tianzun's level should be the lowest, under Level 3. His rise has been too fast, and his foundation isn't stable. Hunting him offers the highest payoff for the effort. I agree with your decision, but...
"This guy is very peculiar. There's relatively little information on him, unlike the top four, whose combat styles we've already figured out completely. If you want to deal with him, you'll need to be careful."
Li Xianzong sneered, "That's what makes it fun. Uncle Tian, I heard the sect seniors say you feared nothing in heaven or earth when you were young. Now that you're older, have you become this timid and overly cautious?"
"If I were twenty years younger, I'd have taken your head off by now," Tian Lingling scoffed.
"Come on, then. Want to fight?" Li Xianzong recklessly provoked the senior at the Saint stage.
Tian Lingling ignored him.
Having become a Bewitching Demon less than a year ago, Li Xianzong was already a peak Level 3 walker. Naturally combative and sharp-witted, he had managed to turn the tables and kill a Level 2 walker of the same profession back when he was only Level 1.
Upon reaching Level 2, he was practically unmatched within his tier and had been recruited by Heavenly King Demonic Eye, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, to be heavily cultivated.
Sure enough, he didn't disappoint the organization. After reaching peak Level 3, he single-handedly assassinated a Level 4 Saint from the Spirit Society's Southern District Branch.
However dazzling Yuanshi Tianzun was in the official faction of Songhai, Li Xianzong was just as dazzling within the Soldier Master Sect.
Once he became a Saint, he would have the qualifications to visit headquarters and meet "Asura."
Li Xianzong flipped through the documents and asked, "Any other intelligence? I recall the Spirit Society's Eastern District Branch is also in Songhai. What are they up to?"
Tian Lingling said in a low voice, "After the Deceitful Eye Judge died, the Eastern District Branch suffered severe losses. They might not participate in this year's trial. No one in Songhai will compete with you."
Li Xianzong grunted in acknowledgment. "Uncle Tian, I secretly rounded up a few of the Deceitful Eye Judge's former slaves. I want to pull off something big to test the Songhai Branch's reaction. This Yuanshi Tianzun is in Kangyang District, right? You're the local heavyweight here—help me pick a location."
Tian Lingling grinned. "If you want to make a big scene, choose a mall, a hospital, or a school. That's guaranteed to shake the world."
Li Xianzong stroked his chin. "There are too many people in a mall, and I don't have enough manpower to control it. As for schools, my dad respected intellectuals the most, so I won't cause trouble for them. Hmm, my dad died in a hospital, and they drained our family's savings dry before he passed. Let's go with a hospital."
Tian Lingling pondered briefly. "A relatively good hospital in Kangyang District would be Pingtai Hospital."
Li Xianzong slapped the bar counter. "That's the one."
***
On the official forum, the recent announcement had ignited a storm of excitement.
#Yuanshi Tianzun Secures Holy Grail in Operation to Hunt Down Hei Wuchang, Awarded Class A Merit#
The announcement was succinct, consisting of only a few sentences, but such a brief notice left official walkers scattered across the country dumbfounded.
[Li Dongze: Oh, my heavens! My heavens! I haven't slept all night. Yes, don't doubt it, I'm simply too excited to sleep.]
[Wangfei: Who is this guy? Why does he talk so weirdly?]
[Bailong: @Wangfei, Yuanshi Tianzun is the one this guy picked up. He hit the jackpot of dumb luck.]
[Wangfei: Ah, his ancestral graves must be puffing green smoke! I'm dying of envy.]
[Lairifangzhang: Didn't Yuanshi die??]
[Qingteng: That was fake news deliberately released to confuse Hei Wuchang.]
[Lairifangzhang: Ohh, so that's how it is. Sister Qingteng, did Tianzun really kill Hei Wuchang?]
[Qingteng: Yes, I saw it with my own eyes.]
[Please Call Me Queen: That kid—no, wait, Tianzun is truly defying the heavens! Just a while ago, he was still a rookie, and in the blink of an eye, he's already a big shot with a Class A merit. Even a team leader like me will have to treat him with utmost respect now.]
[George the Pig: How many years has it been since a frontline member received a Class A merit? Alas, we are witnessing the rise of a genius. Speaking of which, Yuanshi Tianzun must be near the top of the evil professions' bounty lists now, right?]
[Quri Kuduo: Indeed. I wonder if high-level experts from the evil professions will hunt him down. Still, with Tianzun's strength, barely anyone in the Transcendent stage could beat him, right?]
[George the Pig: Not necessarily. Go check out our Five Elements Alliance's bounty list for the Transcendent stage. The top five are all freaks.]
The comment section quickly amassed thousands of replies, the vast majority expressing shock at Yuanshi Tianzun's achievement and discussing it heatedly.
Another monstrous rookie had emerged in the Five Elements Alliance. In that regard, official walkers who frequently surfed the internet were somewhat prepared, given that Yuanshi Tianzun had cleared two S-rank Spirit Realms.
Now that headquarters had conferred a Class A merit upon him, it served as a clear signal—a signal of a future high-ranking executive on the rise.
With his merits secured, as long as he advanced to the corresponding level in the future, leadership positions would be his for the taking.
***
"Feels pretty good. Keep the compliments coming, everyone, I love reading them..."
Amidst the bustling crowds and dazzling lights of the shopping mall, Zhang Yuanqing browsed his phone while accompanying his aunt.
"Stop looking at your phone all the time!" His aunt puffed her cheeks like steamed buns, glaring in complaint.
Zhang Yuanqing obediently slipped his phone back into his pocket.
"Let's go watch a movie later. We haven't seen one this month," his aunt suggested.
For many years in the past, roaming the mall, watching movies, and eating delicious food had been their weekend entertainment.
Once the weekend ended, nephew and aunt parted ways—one to endure the drudgery of school, the other to slave away at work.
"Sure!" Zhang Yuanqing said. "Check if there are tickets for *Sex and Zen*."
"Get lost!"
"Ha, so you've watched it too!"
***
The next day, wearing a backpack, a mask, and a baseball cap, Zhang Yuanqing arrived at his workplace.
"Yuanshi, Decurion Li is back," the receptionist said with a smile. "He's waiting for you upstairs."
*Who's Decurion Li? Isn't my decurion named Teng Yuan...?* Zhang Yuanqing returned a smile. "Thanks."
Chapter 112