No words could describe Zhang Yuanqing's feelings at this moment, but if there had to be one, it would be—fuck!
The Taiyi Sect still hasn't given up looking for the Demon Lord's successor? Their determination to find him was this fierce?
What should I do? Transfer the white tiger in my mind to Little Doubi? No, Little Doubi can't bear the white tiger's pressure; his form and spirit would be obliterated on the spot.
Lay all my cards on the table? Gamble on Fu Qingyang's affection for me? If it were Guan Ya sitting there, it might be possible.
Fu Qingyang probably grew suspicious of me back when he was manipulating Tiandao Bugong. He didn't say anything then—was he holding back a big move, waiting for the Tiger Tally to arrive? But that doesn't make sense either. With his "fiery eyes and golden pupils" and items, even without the Tiger Tally, he could have forced me to tell the truth.
I never thought it would come to this after all. Reality never goes the way you want it to...
Zhang Yuanqing's entire body trembled violently, like a quail gripped by terror. In truth, however, he was confronting the slanted-eyed white tiger in his sea of consciousness, struggling with all his might to resist. Yet even fighting with everything he had merely delayed the moment he would speak the truth.
Finally, he opened his mouth and squeezed out a single word: "I..."
Bean-sized beads of sweat dripped down from his forehead, pattering as they fell.
Fu Qingyang gazed deeply at him. "You what?"
In his sea of consciousness, the slanted-eyed white tiger slowly stood up, appearing ready to devour a man.
Terror detonated within Zhang Yuanqing's heart, and his spirit body shuddered. Just as he was about to confess his identity and state the truth that he was the Demon Lord's successor, deep within his sea of consciousness, a surge of purest, supreme Taiyin power gushed forth.
Like a flood breaching a dam, this power washed over his spirit body, ultimately condensing into an immense black full moon in the depths of his sea of consciousness.
Hazy, ethereal moonlight cascaded down, enveloping Zhang Yuanqing's spirit body. He felt an unprecedented sense of comfort and ease, like an infant returning to the womb.
A miraculous thing occurred. When Zhang Yuanqing looked at the slanted-eyed white tiger again, it remained solemn and majestic, inspiring genuine dread, but the oppressive pressure that had made his soul tremble was gone.
No, not gone... it was shielded by the radiant glow of the black full moon.
Feeling the Taiyin power descending from the "sky," an epiphany struck him through his instincts as a Night Wanderer, allowing him to decipher the nature of the black full moon.
It symbolized the yin essence; it symbolized concealment!
*Is this the power of the character card? A power capable of countering a rule-based item? It really isn't as simple as rewarding items for clearing instances. The Taiyi Sect didn't go through so much trouble searching for the Demon Lord's successor for nothing. There are inside secrets hidden here that I don't know about...* Zhang Yuanqing was inwardly astonished.
By this point, he was completely free from the intimidation of the Tiger Tally, yet on the surface he still appeared terrified, as if walking on the edge of an abyss.
Under Fu Qingyang's increasingly piercing gaze, Zhang Yuanqing kept his voice quavering. "I... am not... the Demon Lord's... successor."
As he spoke those words, Zhang Yuanqing peered inward into his sea of consciousness, anxiously observing the slanted-eyed white tiger's reaction.
It maintained its majestic posture, completely unmoved.
Did I... did I pull it off? Zhang Yuanqing almost breathed a heavy sigh of relief, but considering that Fu Qingyang hadn't recalled the Tiger Tally yet, he forced himself to hold back.
Fu Qingyang waited a few seconds as usual. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, his cold, solemn expression softened all at once. Closing his fingers into a fist, the Tiger Tally vanished back into his inventory.
Only then did Zhang Yuanqing lean back in cooperation, collapsing limp against the high-backed chair, gasping for breath.
Fu Qingyang stood up, walked to the video camera, and switched off the equipment.
He returned to his seat at the desk and gave Zhang Yuanqing nearly ten minutes to recover. Once Zhang Yuanqing's breathing had evened out and color returned to his face, Fu Qingyang spoke:
"The rest is a space for our private conversation.
"Yuanshi, I would like to invite you to join the White Tiger Guards."
Zhang Yuanqing remained slumped against the backrest. "The White Tiger Guards? The guild you founded, Centurion?"
He recalled Ling Jun mentioning this before.
"Yes," Fu Qingyang nodded. "The White Tiger Guards is currently a Level 3 guild and can recruit twenty members. I have already recruited fifteen. The sixteenth seat is the one I want to give to you."
Zhang Yuanqing hesitated for a moment.
"The White Tiger Guards is an organization that belongs to me. It has its own set of benefits: a monthly salary of a hundred thousand yuan, and an allocated apartment in a prime location within a tier-one or tier-two city, worth no less than twenty million.
"In addition, there is a private club dedicated exclusively to serving the White Tiger Guards. If you have any requests, you can contact them. Purchasing luxury goods, sports cars, or handling matters that require special qualifications can all be taken care of by them.
"Including women wearing the black stockings you fancy—the club can find you a whole flock of them."
Zhang Yuanqing was dumbfounded. At that last sentence, he also felt that the Centurion's opinion of him was stubborn and far from objective.
*Am I that kind of lecher?*
"And I have only one requirement for all of you: my orders take precedence over the Five Elements Alliance," Fu Qingyang said indifferently.
"To put it in ancient terms, the White Tiger Guards are my brothers, as well as my private army. Of course, on the surface, we are an affiliated guild under the White Tiger Battalion."
The offer was simply too generous. Zhang Yuanqing hesitated no longer and proclaimed loudly, "I am willing to lay down my life for the Centurion!!"
Clearly, Fu Qingyang wanted to groom him as part of his core faction. Climbing the official pyramid of power made reckless individual bravado meaningless. This young master of a prestigious clan was aloof and proud, but true to his prominent family upbringing, he possessed every skill required.
Zhang Yuanqing guessed as much inwardly, but still asked aloud:
"The reason the Centurion is recruiting me is..."
"I wanted to invite you to join the White Tiger Guards long ago, but Elder Gou said it was on the condition that you pass the grand health check," Fu Qingyang said.
"That was my intention as well. I have been waiting for the grand health check to conclude. Out of all the geniuses I've observed, you are the one I admire most."
Speaking up to this point, the young master of the Fu family wore a haughty expression, like a young monarch passing judgment over his domain:
"There are many geniuses in this world, but in my eyes, most are trash. Ling Jun is a genius, yet he's too indolent—hopeless mud that cannot stick to a wall. Guan Ya is a genius, yet she lacks the heart of the strong; taking things as they come makes her trash as well. Jiang Jingwei has extraordinary talent, yet her mind is filled with nothing but fighting; she cultivates because she loves to fight, not out of hard-working ambition, making her trash too. The female Grand Marshal of the White Tiger Battalion possesses talent so terrifying it drives people to despair, yet her diligence does not match her gifts, so she is also trash."
Zhang Yuanqing listened with a racing heart, thinking to himself, *Centurion, you can't go around saying things like that. If this reached the emperor's ears, heads would roll.*
Yet the man behind the desk remained lofty, cool, and proud, as if he alone were the supreme sovereign above ten thousand souls.
Fu Qingyang continued:
"Yuanshi, you are different from them. You have a deeper inner mind than your peers, a more tactful exterior, and a more diligent spirit. That is the conclusion I reached after observing you. Two S-rank instance reports showed me that you have the resilience to grow stronger the more setbacks you face. In this regard, you are much like me.
"Such qualities are far more important than talent."
*Like you? Good heavens, should I say, 'This loyal prince thanks Imperial Father for his profound affection'?!* Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but roast internally.
He suddenly recalled Guan Ya mentioning that Fu Qingyang had abysmal talent in his youth, receiving no regard from the family elders and being looked down upon by his peers.
Connecting that with what was just said and Fu Qingyang's subsequent rise to prominence, Zhang Yuanqing began to understand why this aloof young master favored him so much.
"Thank you for your grooming and support, Centurion." Zhang Yuanqing hurriedly offered his thanks and flattery.
Leaving Tang Hospital, Zhang Yuanqing did not take Li Dongze's car, making the excuse that he had classes at school to leave by himself.
Walking along the bustling street beside torrential traffic, he turned two questions over in his mind:
First, the black full moon.
*I remember Yuan Ting saying that after a Spirit Realm walker dies, the Spirit Realm formats their character card. But for high-level Spirit Realm walkers, formatting can hardly be thorough, so some unique traits remain.
*Still, isn't this power a bit too absurd? Being able to block a high-level rule-based item means it is definitely an extraordinarily high level of power. It shouldn't have been possible to retain, right? Perhaps this is why the Taiyi Sect is searching so desperately for the Demon Lord's successor?
*Or at least part of the reason?
*This is a good thing anyway. Peeling back the veil of the character card bit by bit is better than being blind to everything. Too bad that power isn't under my control; I can't even sense its existence normally. My instincts as a Night Wanderer tell me that it is the source of Taiyin, symbolizing concealment.*
Second, his old affliction of headaches.
After this grand health check, he realized that his headache problem was out of the ordinary.
In the past, he hadn't thought deeply about it because an ordinary college student had limited means and could do nothing about it.
After becoming a Spirit Realm walker, he had wondered whether there were "doctor" professions in the Spirit Realm. But back then his level was low, his rank was low, his clearance was insufficient, and the frequency of the flare-ups had eased, so he hadn't paid it much mind.
*I have to ask Mom where she bought that medicine...* Thinking this, he opened his contacts and dialed the number of his mother, someone he hadn't contacted in over half a year.
"Beep, beep—"
The call connected quickly, and from the speaker came his mother's gentle yet noticeably forceful voice:
"Yuanzi? What is it? I have a meeting in a bit."
"Mom, where did you buy my special medicine?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
"Why are you asking all of a sudden? Did you run out?"
Though he couldn't see her, just from her voice Zhang Yuanqing could picture his mother's furrowed brow and slight impatience.
"I haven't run out. I just want to know," Zhang Yuanqing said expressionlessly. His tone was cool and detached, lacking his usual cheerful enthusiasm.
"I asked an overseas business partner to buy that medicine for you. Didn't I tell you back then? The drug hasn't hit the market yet; it's still in the research and development phase. If your condition hadn't been deteriorating and Mom had run out of options, I would never have let you take it. Who would have thought it would actually work?"
"Which foreign company?"
"Children shouldn't ask so many questions. Don't spread word about this medicine's existence; it's a trade secret." His mother said impatiently, then, noticing the sharpness in her tone, softened her voice: "Mom will return to China at the end of the year for New Year's. What gift do you want?"
"No need," Zhang Yuanqing refused.
Silence hung on the line for a moment before she made a concession: "I recall that friend is visiting the mainland this year to survey the market. If you really want to learn more, you can ask him. Mom will put in a word for you."
"Mm," Zhang Yuanqing grunted noncommittally.
"If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up. Mom has to attend a meeting."
She was always like this. She always had endless tasks, always hated inefficient communication, and nothing and no one—not even her own child—was more important than her career.
Zhang Yuanqing hung up the phone.
He tucked his phone back into his pocket and walked for a bit in a somber mood when his phone rang again.
Zhang Yuanqing immediately reached for it. Looking at the screen, he saw it was from Xie Lingxi.
The glimmer of hope in his eyes vanished at once, and he answered in an irritated tone:
"You have thirty seconds to finish. I'm surrounded by long-legged ladies in black stockings, so I have no time for your nonsense."
"Does Brother Yuanshi like black stockings? I can wear them for you too," Xie Lingxi said in a sweet voice.
Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a moment and shook his head in rejection. "No, you don't have to. You'd look better in a sailor suit... Cough, cough, nonsense, I don't want to see you in a sailor suit. Get to the point."
"Sister Palace Mistress is back. She wants to see you." Xie Lingxi lowered her tone. "Her condition isn't quite right. It's not convenient to talk over the phone, so just come over."
*The psycho is back? Well, it's been nearly ten days since she headed north.* Zhang Yuanqing stopped walking and hailed a taxi on the roadside.
Inside Tang Hospital.
Fu Qingyang stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, listening to his phone, and said:
"The screening for all members of Kangyang District is complete. There are no Dark Night Rose members, nor anyone bewitched or controlled by evil organizations."
Elder Gou gave a deep grunt of acknowledgment. "Better than yesterday."
Yesterday, the health check had been conducted for Jinjiang District, where two members of Dark Night Rose were exposed and detained on the spot. After a round of interrogation, all that was learned was that their superior might be an official Deacon-level figure.
As for who specifically, those two members did not know either.
However, before conducting the grand health check on the lower-ranking personnel, Elder Gou had already summoned the Deacons of the Songhai Branch ahead of time and completed their evaluations.
Every one of them had passed.
Fu Qingyang pondered and said, "Dark Night Rose possesses means to elude the Tiger Tally's perception. Elder, this is actually a clue in itself."
Elder Gou grunted in agreement once more:
"There aren't many methods capable of shielding against the Tiger Tally. The leader of Dark Night Rose happens to be a Night Wanderer, so I roughly know what level he has reached. That is an entity who has cultivated Taiyin power to its pinnacle, on par with the five Alliance Leaders.
"Heh, Taiyin has two core capabilities: yin power and concealment."
These two capabilities were actually reflected early on in Transcendent-stage skills: Spirit Devouring and Night Walk.
Changing the subject, Elder Gou asked:
"How is Yuanshi's evaluation?"
Fu Qingyang reported truthfully:
"Deacon Sun's recommendation is that it is temporarily unadvisable to grant him a vital post. He still requires tempering and needs to grasp the true essence of an enforcer. As for my side, questioning revealed that he once had dealings with someone from an evil profession, but it was merely a chance encounter. In my view, he is a measured young man with a sense of justice, and this shouldn't be held against him as a stain."
Elder Gou offered no judgment and asked, "What faction did he have ties with?"
Fu Qingyang: "He said the person he met called himself Master Wuhen."
Elder Gou's tone noticeably improved. "If it's him, there's no need to pay it any mind. By the way, did you ask the question the Taiyi Sect entrusted you with?"
Fu Qingyang replied, "He is not the Demon Lord's successor."
Elder Gou finally chuckled. "Very good!"
At Fujia Bay, Ling Jun hung up the phone and muttered:
"He really isn't the Demon Lord's successor. To display such perverted talent without relying on an inheritance... Elder Sun is probably even more baffled now..."
Regardless, there was no longer any doubt about Yuanshi's identity; the Taiyi Sect could shift the focus of their screening elsewhere.
He typed out a message and sent an informative text to Elder Sun's assistant.
Huayu Hotel.
Led by the female assistant, Zhang Yuanqing rode the elevator up to the floor of the presidential suite.
The moment the doors opened, he saw Xie Lingxi standing gracefully by the elevator, having waited for quite a while.
"Brother Yuanshi~"
The little green tea stepped forward naturally, edging the female assistant aside and taking his arm, assuming the guise of an obedient younger sister.
"What does the Palace Mistress want with me?" he asked in a low voice.
Xie Lingxi shook her head slightly. "Sister Palace Mistress is seriously injured. She's in my room and said she needs to see you right away. Hurry over."
*Seriously injured? I recall the Musician profession acts as the healers of the Spirit Realm, possessing the ability to produce Life Essence.
*Just how severe must her injuries be? What level of Bewitching Demon could have injured her?
*And why must she see me when she's injured...* Zhang Yuanqing gave a slight nod. "Give me the keycard."
Chapter 146