Looking at the information before him, Zhang Yuanqing fell into a long silence.
*The Blazing Sun Twins? The Shadow Twins?*
*The Blazing Sun Twins were my dad and the Palace Master's dad, but who were the Shadow Twins? Even the authorities don't know their identities or their Spirit Realm IDs. That's a bit unbelievable.*
*Then again, the Five Elements Alliance hadn't been established back then, and the five major organizations weren't backed by the government yet. Their intelligence gathering was probably lacking.*
By now, Zhang Yuanqing had gained a clear understanding of the Five Elements Alliance's history and background. Years ago, the five organizations were purely non-governmental—the kind of influential local gentry who maintained ties with the imperial court and helped preserve public order.
During the battle over the Compass of Light, the previous Grand Marshal fell in battle. Under the facilitation of the court, the five major organizations underwent restructuring and reorganization, rebranding themselves as the Five Elements Alliance and becoming fully official.
*Killing over ten Dominators in six years is terrifying. Adding up the Dominators across both the lawful and evil professions, the total number is strictly limited. No wonder they said the Xiaoyao organization shook the heavens and earth back then... Though their catchphrase is so chuunibyou. Did they forget to add 'a lovely and charming villain' at the end?*
*So the Compass of Light surfaced twenty-four years ago, before I was even born. I remember the Elvis speaker once played an audio recording of a conversation between the Demon Lord and a mysterious figure.*
*That mysterious figure said the appearance of the Compass of Light triggered a mad scramble among countless spirit realm walkers. It seems Xiaoyao took part as well. But that battle was of the highest caliber, with demigods coming out in full force. My dad and his partners probably weren't demigods, but to participate in such a struggle, they had to be peak Dominators at the very least—or even possess means comparable to a demigod. Hiss, turns out I really am a second-generation spirit walker, and one from top-tier stock at that.*
*After the incident with the Compass of Light concluded, Xiaoyao vanished without a trace. Over the next nine years, the Chu family was exterminated, my dad died in a car accident, and the Blazing Sun Twins died one after another.*
*What exactly did the members of Xiaoyao do during those nine years?*
To uncover the truth behind Xiaoyao's disappearance, he had to start with the Compass of Light, because the disasters that befell the four core members occurred after the fight for the compass.
At least, that was what the information in this record indicated.
Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a moment and quickly established two directions for his investigation: first, probe Fu Qingyang for intelligence regarding the Compass of Light; second, call his mother to talk about the events of those years.
Even though his relationship with his biological mother was terribly strained and he felt strong resistance toward contacting her, Zhang Yuanqing had to figure out what his father had left inside him.
If he remained ignorant and muddle-headed, he wouldn't even know how he died when his enemies eventually came knocking.
Not only did he need to clarify what his deadbeat father had left behind, but he also had to identify the enemies in advance so he could take precautions.
*Sigh. Being the Demon Lord's successor already has me walking on eggshells, and now I'm the successor of Xiaoyao too? Damn it, do I have that much karma tied to me?* Zhang Yuanqing thought despondently, unable to shake off a sense of self-defeat.
Ever since becoming a spirit realm walker, the monthly instances were already draining enough.
"The bunny girl here really knows how to cook. I'm almost growing a potbelly," Li Chunfeng remarked around a mouthful of fried egg.
"Time to hit the gym. As a Scholar at the extraordinary stage, you're only slightly stronger than an ordinary human. I have a colleague named Wang Tai who's also a Scholar. During his last medical checkup, he had a whole laundry list of shut-in ailments." Zhang Yuanqing pulled his thoughts back and took a sip of vegetable soup. "I'll have Guan Ya spar with you later to help you get in shape."
Li Chunfeng paused, then asked tentatively, "Did I offend you somehow?"
"Why would you say that?"
"Then why do you want me dead?"
"...Brother Li, you've grown increasingly humorous lately. Last time you even cracked a pun. I'm thinking of docking half a month's salary."
"Whatever." Li Chunfeng was currently taking freelance work from Jiang Jingwei and no longer cared about that modest wage.
Just writing summer vacation homework for Jiang Jingwei had earned him over a hundred thousand yuan.
Zhang Yuanqing glanced at him. This Scholar used to have principles, adamantly refusing Jiang Jingwei's requests because he considered doing middle school homework an insult to Scholars.
Now, his chat history with Jiang Jingwei went like this: *If any of your classmates need their summer homework written, feel free to refer them to me. Twenty percent discount for your friends.*
Money was indeed a corrupting influence, easily eroding a comrade's ironclad convictions.
After finishing breakfast, Zhang Yuanqing and Li Chunfeng walked into the dining area, only to find Commandery Princess Yinyao engrossed in a tablet, watching a historical drama titled *The Fall of the Great Ming*.
Guan Ya, Queen, and Xie Lingxi had already returned to their rooms.
"What made you watch this?" Zhang Yuanqing set his plate on the table.
"Xie Lingxi found it for me. She said she was recommending a magnificent, philosophical masterpiece on the rise and fall of dynasties," Commandery Princess Yinyao transmitted through psychic vibrations, communicating with Yuanshi Tianzun in the manner of a spirit.
*Talk about twisting the knife. That girl Lingxi is getting back at you...* Zhang Yuanqing clicked his tongue inwardly.
As if anticipating his thoughts, Commandery Princess Yinyao projected another intention:
"She will be disappointed. I have long since seen through the mortal realm."
Without deep insights into life, one could never craft a magical artifact like the Ghost Mirror.
Zhang Yuanqing stared at her exquisite countenance for a moment, unable to read her mind. At first glance, this commandery princess seemed to side with the concubine faction, loudly claiming she would eliminate rivals for Queen and the little green tea while hatching schemes on their behalf (such as hiring assassins).
Yet both of her attempts had made Queen and Xie Lingxi cringe so hard their toes curled.
At the same time, she did not grow close to Guan Ya, acting rather distant.
Yet she was not truly aloof either; she actively involved herself in the small team's internal friction, happily serving as a tool for the concubine faction.
*She's a troublemaker too. A corpse puppet lacks micro-expressions and eye movements, so even Guan Ya can't read her thoughts.* Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a moment, then said, "Princess, in another two weeks, I'll be entering the Spirit Realm. When the time comes, I'll take you to meet the senior."
He decided to give Commandery Princess Yinyao a gentle warning.
The subtext was clear: *If you don't behave, I'll tell the old crone on you!*
A faint ripple stirred in Commandery Princess Yinyao's psychic energy before being quickly concealed. Ignoring him, she focused intently on the drama.
*She really is afraid of the old crone. Everything has its match.* Zhang Yuanqing went up the stairs to the second floor and knocked on Xie Lingxi's door.
"Who is it?" a crisp, bell-like voice called from inside.
"Me."
"Come on in!" The voice instantly brimmed with delight.
Pushing the door open, he saw Xie Lingxi lying on the bed in tiny pink shorts, playing on her phone. Her long legs were raised and swaying back and forth, wiggling her plump little rear along with them.
"Brother, isn't it inappropriate to come into my room right after breakfast? Sister Guan Ya will be angry if she finds out."
Her little rear wiggled even more enthusiastically.
Zhang Yuanqing said crossly, "Relax, my girlfriend isn't terrifying. Cut out the sarcastic tone. I came to tell you something: don't contact the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter anytime soon, and don't meet her."
Xie Lingxi's expression changed, and she asked tentatively, "Why?"
"I met her yesterday and accidentally dragged you into it. She said she's going to strip you naked and hang you from the Songjiang Bridge."
Xie Lingxi burst into tears on the spot. "Brother Yuanshi, how could you do this to me? Waaah..."
***
At the Good Music Hotel.
Though both were suburban hotels, unlike the deserted Wuhen Hotel, Good Music enjoyed a steady stream of guests and booming business.
A young couple stepped into the lobby and saw a half-naked man in boxer shorts hanging in midair, bound from head to toe in hair-thin red threads.
A man weighing a hundred kilograms hung securely suspended by a single thin thread.
"Ah, what's going on with this guy..."
The young woman eyed him with astonishment. Seeing that he was a middle-aged uncle with a beer belly, she immediately lost interest, pulling out her phone to snap a photo for her social feed.
"Pardon me, please do not take photos. This gentleman is a renowned performance artist, and he dislikes being photographed."
Wang Qian, dressed in the front desk uniform, gently intervened.
The young woman frowned in annoyance. "If he doesn't want photos, why show off? Tsk."
Her boyfriend scoffed, "That's how modern artists are—just chasing clout. They'll do anything bizarre for fame."
Grumbling, they walked to the front desk, finished checking in, and eagerly hurried into the elevator.
Concealed beneath his frizzy afro, Mad Love Great Sage's weathered face was flushed bright red with humiliation. He wished he could return to the Spirit Realm right then and there.
Half an hour later, Wang Qian glanced at Mad Love Great Sage, picked up the landline, and dialed a room number.
"Palace Master, time is up."
With that, he set down the receiver.
Mad Love Great Sage plummeted from midair, landing heavily on the cold floor.
"Finally over! If this went on any longer, my old face would have been completely ruined. How could I go on living in this world? I, the Mad Love Great Sage, am a respectable man!"
Mad Love Great Sage rotated his arms. Having hung for three hours, his blood circulation was poor, leaving his muscles aching and sore.
"What did you do this time to upset the Palace Master?" Wang Qian walked over and handed him a bottle of mineral water.
Mad Love Great Sage unscrewed the cap, took a deep gulp, and cursed furiously, "Yuanshi Tianzun sold me out! Fuck his—"
Before he could finish, the Palace Master's cool, distant voice drifted into both their ears: "Hang him for another three hours."
The red threads scattered across the floor sprang to life, rebinding Mad Love Great Sage and hoisting him back above the lobby.
The forty-something-year-old man let out a wail like a sputtering tractor engine.
Wang Qian watched him with deep pity.
***
At the Fujia Bay Villa.
In the study, the handcrafted dessert table was piled high with exquisite, expensive cakes, fresh fruit, and sliced ham.
Sipping iced cola, Zhang Yuanqing looked across at Young Master Qian and asked, "Boss, did you check up on information about the Compass of Light afterward?"
Back then, he had learned about the Chu family massacre from Demonic Eye, as well as the fact that Asura of the Soldier Master sect had invested in the leader of Dark Night Rose because of the Compass of Light. He had passed that information along to Fu Qingyang.
In high spirits, Fu Qingyang had increased his housing subsidy from twenty million to twenty-five million.
At the time, Fu Qingyang was still a Deacon and had no clearance to access intel on the Compass of Light. Now that he had ascended to Dominator and become an influential Elder of the disciplinary corps, backed by both elder authority and the Fu family's resources, he had surely learned more.
"Information regarding the Compass of Light has an extremely high classification level. Even level 7 Elders lack the authority to consult it. Level 8 Elders can grasp an overview, and only peak Elders have the clearance to view the details. I don't know much either. Furthermore, by the rules, I cannot tell you," Fu Qingyang said.
Zhang Yuanqing knew there had to be a 'but' coming.
"However, behind closed doors, there is no harm in speaking of it." Fu Qingyang spoke in a measured cadence, calmly sipping the strong liquor in his glass. "The Compass of Light does not belong to any known profession. It was excavated from the Spirit Realm by a Western powerhouse. As far as we know, its greatest capability is prophecy, and its prophecies never fail.
"The reason the Compass of Light drew countless spirit realm walkers into conflict back then was because it issued a prophecy."
Zhang Yuanqing perked up. "What prophecy?"
This question had puzzled him for a long time. In the Elvis speaker recording, the mysterious figure had not answered the Demon Lord. In the Zoo that day, Demonic Eye had not answered him either.
Fu Qingyang's voice suddenly lowered:
"*When the Sun, Moon, and Stars return to their stations, the gods slumbering in chaos shall awaken. The King enthroned on high shall lead the gods to reignite war, and the world shall enter a new cycle.*"
*When the Sun, Moon, and Stars return to their stations...* Zhang Yuanqing froze.
At that moment, a bolt of lightning seemed to rip through his mind, bringing profound enlightenment and a surging wave of trembling awe.
In an instant, many things clicked into place.
The sun, moon, and stars symbolized the three major stages of a Night Walker. *When the Sun, Moon, and Stars return to their stations...* So that was why the Night Walker profession was so special. Moreover, he finally understood why the concept of "focusing cultivation" on a specific type of spiritual energy existed.
*So is the black full moon on my character card formed by focusing on lunar energy? Or is it literally the 'Moon' from 'Sun, Moon, and Stars'? Fuck, if that's true, was the Demon Lord really just a Dominator? How could a Dominator possess demigod-level power? That battle where he perished together with Deceitful Eye Judge was indeed not so simple...* Zhang Yuanqing's scalp tingled.
Fu Qingyang glanced at him, his deep eyes narrowing slightly before returning to normal, and continued, "Later, the Compass of Light was shattered in that battle, its fragments carved up by various factions. I only know that the Five Elements Alliance holds two fragments, one in the hands of the Palace Master and the other with the Gang Leader. The whereabouts of the remaining fragments are unknown."
The Palace Master and Gang Leader he referred to were the leader of the Water God Palace and the chief of the Scarlet Fire Gang.
"Is there anything else?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
Fu Qingyang shook his head.
After a second, he added, "There is one more matter to notify you of. Prepare yourself next week to attend classes at Qinfeng Academy. It's time for you to learn some systematic knowledge."
"Qinfeng Academy?" Zhang Yuanqing asked blankly. "What is that?"
"A spirit realm jointly established by the Taiyi Sect and the Five Elements Alliance, serving as an institution specifically to train Extraordinary and Saint walkers. It gathers many veterans who have retired from the front lines; some grew tired of the slaughter and chose to become instructors, some conduct research there, and others committed mistakes, were temporarily stripped of their posts, and were exiled there to teach," Fu Qingyang explained.
"Generally speaking, walkers who join the authorities undergo a vetting and probationary period. Once confirmed clean, the top students are sent there for advanced studies..."
He eyed his trusted subordinate. "You are a special case."
The probationary period was three months. Yuanshi Tianzun had reached Saint in three months, and in four months, he was nearing level 5.
"Do I still need to go? How long does one training session last?" Zhang Yuanqing was somewhat reluctant.
"Seven days," Fu Qingyang said.
*Seven days? That's not long, but will training even be useful for me?* Zhang Yuanqing asked, "Can I decline?"
"Aside from students from the Five Elements Alliance, youths from the Taiyi Sect and spirit realm clans will also attend Qinfeng Academy. Expanding your social circle will do you no harm. This session's roster includes Sun Miaomiao, Zhao Chenghuang, and Yuan Ting," Fu Qingyang said in a tone that brooked no refusal.
In Young Master Qian's view, this was a prime opportunity to broaden connections.
If Yuanshi Tianzun wished to climb higher within the organization, he could not rely solely on Fu Qingyang; he needed his own network and his own faction. Politics was never a game meant for lone wolves.
"Furthermore, while you cannot gain experience there, Qinfeng Academy is a very peculiar spirit realm. It houses plenty of good things and conceals a few secrets, though I cannot go into detail right now. Starlords from the Taiyi Sect teach there as well; you can take the opportunity to study a Starlord's combat techniques."
Since Fu Qingyang had put it that way, Zhang Yuanqing could hardly refuse. He nodded. "All right."
Leaving the study and returning to his own room, Zhang Yuanqing mulled over the intelligence on the Compass of Light.
*I'm even more certain that Xiaoyao's disappearance and my father's death were tied to the Compass of Light's prophecy. Did they hold fragments as well? Where did those fragments end up?*
*The prophecy of the Compass of Light sounds like an apocalyptic calamity. Wait, the Five Elements Alliance merged right after that...*
A thought struck him. He pulled out his phone and sent a message to the Chinese-American Eagle of Freedom:
*Quick question: did the lawful professions over on your side undergo any major reforms twenty years ago?*
The message sent.
Seconds later, Eagle of Freedom replied: *I'm in a shootout with some black brothers. Talk later.*
*Enjoy your shootout...* Zhang Yuanqing exited the messaging app, opened his contacts, and searched for Chen Shu.
Then he dialed his mother's number.
"Sorry, the number you dialed is switched off..."
A female automated voice played over the speaker.
*Switched off?*
*Given the time difference, it should be the middle of the night over there, so she's probably sleeping...* Zhang Yuanqing lowered his phone, leaned his weight back against the chair, and sat alone in a daze for a while.
He decided to go back to his ancestral hometown to look around.
To investigate someone, starting with the people around them and the environment they grew up in was undoubtedly the fastest and most accurate approach.
Since he couldn't reach his mother by phone, he would head to his father's hometown to investigate.
Chapter 399