This time, Zhang Yuanqing believed he could elude Heavenly King Demonic Eye's scan. With the Silencer Mask sealing away his powers, he was no different from an ordinary person. Judging from that suffocating sensation of dread, Demonic Eye had to be quite far away. At such a distance, with the vertical eye covering so vast an expanse, he doubted Demonic Eye could perceive every single person's mental state with total clarity.
As everyone knew, the broader an ability's area of effect, the harder it was to maintain fine control.
Seconds turned to minutes. After roughly five minutes, the terrifying gaze finally vanished.
*Did he leave? Did his sight move elsewhere?*
Zhang Yuanqing still did not dare relax. Standing by the window, he stared intently out into the silent night.
Right now, he feared two things most. The first was a knock on his living room door, followed by Heavenly King Demonic Eye walking in with his athletic headband—an encounter far more horrifying than being visited by an invisible vengeful wraith.
The second was Demonic Eye's face suddenly popping up outside his window, grinning as he said, *Found you at last, Yuanshi Tianzun!*
That would truly make his heart stop.
Half an hour later, everything remained calm and peaceful. What Zhang Yuanqing feared had not come to pass. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief. He closed the window, drew the curtains tight, and dragged his exhausted body back to bed, falling into a deep sleep.
Several hundred meters away, on the roof of a residential building, the vertical eye on Heavenly King Demonic Eye's forehead beamed with crimson light as it swept from building to building.
After a long time, he drew in the beam, readjusted his athletic headband, and sat at the edge of the rooftop, feeling the muggy breeze.
"Not in this area either..."
"I startled the snake yesterday. Don't tell me Yuanshi Tianzun fled Songhai? Sigh, it's not easy making a trip down south. Between Yuanshi Tianzun and the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter, I have to finish at least one."
"Tomorrow I'll head to Songhai University to scout things out."
Heavenly King Demonic Eye leaned back, flopped onto the rooftop in the shape of a spread-eagle star, and began snoring loudly.
The next morning, Zhang Yuanqing, having reverted to an ordinary human's constitution, was jolted awake by the chime of message notifications.
*Forgot to mute notifications for the White Tiger Guards group chat...* Cursing under his breath, he picked up his phone to check the messages.
Youfeng Laiyi: [Guild Master, I've uploaded the information on Bill Tarantino and Annie to the group files. Also, I've found out their purpose for coming to the mainland. Do you want me to private message you?]
This Youfeng Laiyi's avatar was an adorable Scottish Fold cat. Zhang Yuanqing tapped on it to take a look. Ah, a woman.
Fu Qingyang: [Say it here.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [Bill has two objectives in coming to the mainland: first, to conduct a transaction with our Five Elements Alliance; second, to welcome the president of the Merchant Guild back to the Western Continent. As for why the president of the Merchant Guild is over on our side, I haven't been able to find out yet.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [Annie is a member of the Goddess of Beauty Association. The Goddess of Beauty Association and the Merchant Guild are allies, similar to the relationship between the five major factions of our Five Elements Alliance. Annie is Bill Tarantino's assistant. Her goal in coming to the mainland is to uncover the truth behind the Demon Lord's death.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [Guild Master, this intelligence gathering cost five hundred thousand dollars. Please reimburse me.]
Reading this far, Zhang Yuanqing's mind cleared considerably. His first reaction was: *Can confidential intelligence like this just be blabbed in the group chat like that?*
Immediately after, he realized that the White Tiger Guards truly were Fu Qingyang's inner circle—the kind of confidants who could gather together to plot treason. That was why Fu Qingyang was so comfortable discussing important matters in the group.
*No wonder the Centurion said that inviting me to join the White Tiger Guards required a meeting and consensus from everyone...*
*Taking so long to invite me into the guild—does that mean everyone was initially against it? Until the Bronze Sparrow Tower case wrapped up, at which point Fu Qingyang suddenly pulled me in.*
*Was it that case that changed the White Tiger Guards' opinion of me and earned their recognition?*
While Zhang Yuanqing let his thoughts wander, he continued skimming through the messages.
Xiao Naofu: [The president of the Merchant Guild? Have any of you heard of this person before? If he's active on the mainland, he shouldn't be completely unknown. Also, why is he on our side?]
Youfeng Laiyi: [No idea. The people from the Merchant Guild are tight-lipped about it. They refuse to spill a single word, no matter how much extra money you offer.]
Fu Qingyang: [Strictly speaking, he isn't the president of the Merchant Guild. He is simply the strongest among the Void class. The Merchant Guild forcibly bestowed the title of president upon him and revered him as their king. Furthermore, he is one of ours.]
Qi Cilang: [Boss, Boss, is there any juicy gossip about this guy? Tell us, tell us!]
Fu Qingyang: [There is nothing to say. This person is mysterious and keeps a low profile. The Five Elements Alliance has no records on him whatsoever.]
*President? Void class? In the country?*
Having just listened to the Demon Lord's audio recording, Zhang Yuanqing was exceptionally sensitive to high-level Void walkers. He hurriedly typed a message:
[Centurion, are there many Void walkers in our country? @Fu Qingyang]
Qi Cilang: [Yuanshi Tianzun really is a rookie. How could there be Void walkers in our country? What would be the point of the Spirit Realm's regional divisions otherwise? Even if there are Void walkers domestically, they're foreign walkers visiting, like Bill Tarantino. But there can't be many of them.]
*If their numbers are few, high-level ones are even rarer. Could the Void walker the Demon Lord met be the president of the Merchant Guild? That guy deliberately groomed the Demon Lord. Whether his attitude toward the Demon Lord's successor is friendly or hostile is hard to say, but he will definitely take an interest.*
*I need to be careful.*
While Zhang Yuanqing was lost in thought, Fu Qingyang sent another message:
[@Youfeng Laiyi, focus your investigation on the Goddess of Beauty Association. Their relationship with the Demon Lord was out of the ordinary. If they merely wanted to know how he died, an email would have sufficed. The fact that the Demon Lord and the Deceitful Eye Judge perished together is no secret; the Five Elements Alliance wouldn't hide it.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [I'll try my best, but Guild Master, you'd better not get your hopes too high. The women of the Goddess of Beauty Association are insidious. Actually, I have an idea.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [Rather than going through all the trouble of prying into the Goddess of Beauty Association, why not try seducing Annie? The Demon Lord was a Night Wanderer. If we tell Annie that Ling Jun is the crown prince of the Taiyi Sect, she'll definitely take the bait.]
Qi Cilang: [Hahaha, great idea! @Ling Jun]
Hengsao Tianxia: [Envious. @Ling Jun]
Ling Jun: [Piss off, all of you! Is a woman of the Desire class someone I can touch? Believe it or not, before I even pry any info out of her, I'd end up controlled by the enemy! Unless you can give me a way to resist her exactions.]
The mature and composed Xiao Naofu joined in: [Ling Jun has a point. Annie is at the Saint stage. A Spirit Realm walker of the same rank can hardly resist her charms or resist what she demands. To get something out of her, the only way is kidnapping and torture, but that would blow the matter out of proportion and not be worth the cost.]
The group went quiet for a moment.
This was indeed a thorny problem.
From what they understood of the Desire class, resisting their sensual allure was already excruciatingly difficult. Once physical intimacy occurred, refusing their "demands" was virtually impossible.
Even the purification ability of the Night Wanderer class wouldn't work.
By nature, their demand was not a negative debuff.
*Getting a free ride with a Desire walker—what's so hard about that?* Zhang Yuanqing typed:
[Actually, it's not hard. I have a way that will let you enjoy a Desire walker without paying any price whatsoever. @Ling Jun]
Ling Jun: [Don't use such vulgar phrasing. It's the union of body and soul, the resonance of spirits! Hmm, you really have a way? Let's hear it.]
In truth, Ling Jun didn't believe Yuanshi Tianzun could offer any valuable advice.
Talented though the kid was, his lack of general knowledge was equally real, and knowledge had to be accumulated over time.
Yuanshi Tianzun: [I recall there's an overseas class called 'Knight.' They possess the ability to establish contracts. Is it possible to use a Knight item to sign a contract with a Desire walker stating that she cannot demand any compensation?]
Ling Jun: [!!!]
Qi Cilang: [!!!]
Hengsao Tianxia: [!!!]
Xiao Naofu: [It seems... feasible... How did I not think of that? Yuanshi Tianzun, your angle is brilliant.]
Youfeng Laiyi: [Truly a stroke of genius! Why didn't anyone think of this before? Guild Master, this new recruit of yours has quite a good head on his shoulders.]
Ling Jun: [Yuanshi, why are your thoughts on this matter so sharp?]
*It's not that I'm sharp, it's the Demon Lord! It's normal that you didn't think of it—what decent person spends their time researching how to freeload off the Desire class? Only the Demon Lord would!* Zhang Yuanqing muttered to himself.
Fu Qingyang: [Yuanshi's suggestion is excellent. I will find a way to obtain a Knight item. @Ling Jun]
*Centurion, once you get your hands on an item like that, you must lend it to me! I want to have a chat about life's ideals with Annie, too...* Zhang Yuanqing actively participated in the conversation, growing increasingly familiar with the frequent chatters in the White Tiger Guards.
Gradually, they shortened how they addressed him, dropping the "Tianzun" and calling him "Yuanshi."
Once the White Tiger Guards chat quieted down, Zhang Yuanqing dialed Fu Qingyang's number.
"Centurion, last night I felt Heavenly King Demonic Eye's gaze. He traced his way to my neighborhood. Even though the Silencer Mask got me through this time, it's not a permanent solution."
Zhang Yuanqing poured out his grievances to his superior, describing how Demonic Eye was pressing in step by step.
Fu Qingyang fell silent for a full dozen seconds before saying slowly:
"I understand. I'll pass your situation on to Elder Gou. This truly cannot be delayed any longer."
This cat-and-mouse game might be slightly tiring and troublesome for Heavenly King Demonic Eye, but for Yuanshi Tianzun, a single mistake meant losing his life.
***
Songhai University.
Heavenly King Demonic Eye held a small notepad, nibbling on the end of a pen as he asked, "You're a freshman teacher, right? In your recollection, have any students been skipping classes long-term recently?"
Opposite him sat a middle-aged man wearing black-rimmed glasses and a short-sleeved collared shirt.
The teacher's eyes were somewhat vacant as he replied, "I don't know. I'm too lazy to take roll call in class. Even if I did, I'd have forgotten by now. Who pays attention to that?"
"Ah, this..." Demonic Eye said helplessly. "You really are an irresponsible teacher."
The middle-aged man answered truthfully, "No, I think I'm quite responsible. At least I teach my lectures properly. As for whether they listen, that's the students' own business. Adults must take responsibility for their own choices. Students who want to learn will naturally acquire knowledge; forcing the poor students who don't want to learn is pointless."
*That actually makes sense...* Demonic Eye pondered for a moment and asked, "Have you ever done bad things? For example, using your authority to coerce female students into sexual relations, or using your position to secure improper gains?"
A flicker of struggle crossed the teacher's face. "My health isn't great. I'm past that age... No improper gains..."
Heavenly King Demonic Eye nodded slightly. "Teach well and educate the people. You may go."
Dismissing the teacher, he sought his next target. Throughout the morning, through tedious screening, Demonic Eye collected the names of more than thirty students who had severely truant records recently.
As noon approached, a group of students walked out of the academic building, brushing past Demonic Eye.
"Wait a moment!"
Heavenly King Demonic Eye called out to them.
Hearing him, the young students turned around, only to meet a pair of blood-red pupils inscribed with eerie runes.
Instantly, their expressions froze, their brains stripped of the ability to think.
Demonic Eye smiled warmly. "We're good classmates, good brothers, right?"
"Ah, yes, yes..." The students nodded blankly, completely entranced.
Demonic Eye looked at a tall, skinny male student with puffy bags under his eyes and asked, "Are you a freshman? What's your name?"
The tall, skinny young man answered subconsciously, "I'm Li Lesheng, a freshman."
Having said that, he asked with some confusion, "Aren't we good brothers? You don't even know this?"
Demonic Eye said with a smile, "Just asking casually. By the way, has anyone in your class been absent from school for a long time lately?"
"Absent for a long time..." Li Lesheng thought for a moment and said, "Yeah. That kid Zhang Yuanqing hasn't shown up in ages. Last time I added him and invited him to a mixer. He clearly agreed, but then nobody could track him down."
Demonic Eye let out an "Oh?" and asked, "How do you write his name?"
"Zhang with the bow and long radicals, and Yuanqing from the Yuan and Qing dynasties," Li Lesheng said.
Demonic Eye noted the name down. Habitually, he asked, "Have you done bad things, like abusing your position to—"
At this point, he looked at the boy's cheap clothes and pants, his shoes that cost a hundred or two hundred yuan at most, and the dark circles under his eyes from staying up late gaming... Demonic Eye swallowed his remaining words and waved a hand.
"Go have lunch."
The first batch of names was more or less collected. Next, he just had to infiltrate the school's archives, match them up, and search for every single name on the list.
Yuanshi Tianzun was an official walker; his name would certainly have been expunged and impossible to find in the school records.
Whoever's name was missing was Yuanshi Tianzun.
***
A pet shop.
A curly-haired toy poodle sat upright on a desk. From a potted plant at the corner of the desk, tendrils automatically reached out, booted up the computer, typed in the password, and logged into the conference software.
A few minutes later, the elders of the Songhai Branch logged on one after another. The sixth to arrive was the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter.
Elder Gou let out a sigh:
"Everyone, Fu Qingyang just contacted me. Heavenly King Demonic Eye has traced his way to Yuanshi's home.
"The tournament organized by headquarters begins in one week. This matter cannot be delayed any further; it's time to deal with Demonic Eye.
"Luo Shen, you've clashed with Demonic Eye before. How is his combat strength?"
Chapter 171