Afraid

"At 3:00 a.m. this morning, colleagues from the Liandu branch received an emergency notice from the Public Security Bureau. An extraordinary incident occurred in the Lianwu Residential Complex in Liandu, leaving several Illusionists dead at the scene. Following a preliminary on-site investigation, colleagues from the Liandu branch confirmed that this was an assassination operation targeting the leadership of the Southern Sect. According to information gathered at the scene, the operation was spearheaded by 'Yuanshi Tianzun.' The targets were the Southern Sect's Sixth Elder, Spirit Realm ID 'False Revolution,' along with his mistresses and subordinates, totaling eight people, whose Spirit Realm IDs are as follows..." The post gave a concise summary of the crime scene and the identities of the deceased. It kept strictly to plain description without commentary, entirely in line with the phrasing typical of an official account. In addition to the text description, photos from the on-site investigation were attached, including photos of the Southern Sect's Sixth Elder and five female Illusionists—with their naked bodies pixelated. There was also a photo of the bloody words: "Yuanshi Tianzun was here." *** In an upscale apartment in the Capital, a gathering spot for Taiyi Sect disciples. Sun Miaomiao squatted on her chair with her chin resting on her knees. Her hands flew across the keyboard with a rapid clatter, her ten fingers moving so fast they blurred into afterimages. Operating ten accounts by herself, she took on a dozen internet trolls simultaneously—a true keyboard immortal of her generation. Sun Miaomiao spent years lurking on the country's largest social media platform—popularly known as the "Toilet of the Internet" or "Trash Heap." Under real names, Liushui had registered over a dozen accounts specifically for casual entertainment. At times, she led her sisters in throwing heavy punches in feminist flame wars; at other times, she posed as a man to do battle against foolish women; and at still other times, she disguised herself as a "rational, objective, and neutral" observer, lecturing the world from the moral high ground. Now she played an angry youth denouncing social injustice and criticizing bureaucratic indolence, and now an aggressive nationalist relentlessly doxxing and harassing "walking 500k" spies. Endowed with a flexible moral baseline and shifting allegiances, wherever an argument could be had, there her presence was found. Dawn was breaking. Sun Miaomiao wrapped up her final, exhilarating flame war and switched windows to the Taiyi Sect forum. She had many accounts on the Taiyi Sect forum as well, but Night Wanderers were scarce in number; at its peak, the forum saw only a few hundred people active. It was hardly enough to satisfy her appetite. Still, browsing forums had long become second nature to her. Whenever she spotted an annoying post, she would jump in to flame it with a few sharp remarks, then go to sleep thoroughly satisfied. The moment the screen switched over to the official forum, a pinned post caught her eye: #Breaking News: Yuanshi Tianzun Successfully Hunts Down the Southern Sect's Sixth Elder# The poster was Yuan Ting. *Is this guy doing clickbait again?* Sun Miaomiao was full of skepticism, but she couldn't resist clicking in. The post contained only two words: *Holy shit!* Below that was a link. Sun Miaomiao clicked it and found it led to a thread on the Five Elements Alliance forum. After reading through it carefully, her mind turned into mush, her sweet, rounded face going completely blank. "How did he do it? The gap between a Saint and a Dominator is even wider than the gap between a Transcendent and a Saint. Can someone really hunt down a Dominator at the Saint stage...?" Sun Miaomiao sucked in a breath of cold air. "If Zhao Chenghuang sees this post, his Dao heart is going to shatter." *** In an office at the Ximen District Public Security Bureau in the Capital. Zhao Chenghuang, who was on duty, sat at his desk, staring blankly at the post Yuan Ting had forwarded. He didn't log onto the forums very often; he had only learned of the thread at seven that morning when a subordinate informed him. "Yuanshi Tianzun went for revenge, didn't he? How on earth did he find where a Southern Sect elder was hiding?" "To the user above, that's not the point! The point is that he actually succeeded in killing a Dominator!" "Could the intel be wrong? Other Dominators must have participated, right? The Five Elements Alliance is just hyping him up and giving him the credit. Think about it: a Saint killing a Dominator? Is that even possible?" "Yuanshi Tianzun isn't some alliance leader's scion. Look at his relationship with headquarters—hype him up? Headquarters would love nothing more than to stomp him underfoot." "I just checked the Five Elements Alliance forum. Someone already pieced together the battle. A Dominator did take part—an Arbiter of Fate—but she was only playing support. I don't need to explain what kind of class an Arbiter of Fate is, right? According to surveillance footage, the entire fight lasted one minute and thirty-six seconds, and the Arbiter of Fate only entered near the very end. In other words, Yuanshi Tianzun was the primary force in killing the Southern Sect elder! It's unbelievable; the Five Elements Alliance side is going crazy." "A Saint killing a Dominator! That's insane—absolutely off the charts!" "Terrifying. Every year some monstrous prodigy rises out of nowhere. A few years back it was the Grand Marshal, the year before last it was Money Prince, last year was the Demon Lord, and now Yuanshi Tianzun pops up. Yet the previous ones clearly didn't match him—at least at the Saint stage, Yuanshi Tianzun is the undisputed strongest." "Elder Sun made a huge blunder..." Zhao Chenghuang scrolled through the comments, feeling a wave of intense despair and helplessness wash over him. No matter how hard he tried, he could never catch up to Yuanshi Tianzun. For someone as proud and haughty as him, this brought a crushing sense of defeat. *** In Songhai, at the Kangyang District Public Security Bureau. Tianxia Guihuo stared intently at his computer monitor. He had read through all the comments and reviewed the surveillance footage uploaded by colleagues from the Hang City branch. *He has Dominator-tier items, and multiple ones at that.* This was the deduction Tianxia Guihuo made based on the intel. Next: *Yuanshi Tianzun killed the Southern Sect's Sixth Elder to establish his dominance, warning evil factions not to target him. Perhaps it's also a warning to headquarters—hard to say, I'll watch further...* Then: *Yuanshi Tianzun trusts the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter more than the official elders, even those of the Songhai branch.* Finally: *Regardless of how he gets along with headquarters in the future—whether they sever ties or reconcile—I must firmly preserve my relationship with Yuanshi Tianzun. What he can offer me is greater than what headquarters can.* After completing his analysis, he sighed softly. "Some people exist solely to make everyone else feel inadequate." Before Yuanshi Tianzun, his own accomplishments weren't worth mentioning, and his pride was utterly laughable. To put it in melodramatic terms: *This man suppresses his entire generation, forcing all paragons to bow their heads.* *** *Ding-dong, ding-dong...* Notification chimes sounded continuously on his phone. In an eighty-square-meter rented apartment, Little Fatty had not slept all night, keeping a close eye on the Southern Sect's chat group—hosted on an overseas messaging app. At 8:30 a.m., an urgent announcement was issued within the Southern Sect's chat group, informing members that the Sixth Elder, "False Revolution," had returned to the Spirit Realm, slain in an assassination by Yuanshi Tianzun. The Southern Sect's leadership ordered Illusionists in Jiangnan Province to lie low and relocate immediately, because going by official practice, the authorities were certain to seize on this momentum to launch a sweeping crackdown. When the news broke, it detonated like a blockbuster bomb in the minds of the Southern Sect's members, bringing an overwhelming shock and a suffocating terror. Only the day before, they had treated the assassination attempt on Yuanshi as casual gossip, believing Yuanshi Tianzun had surely been scared out of his wits and would only dare to cower in Songhai from then on. They had spoken of him with dripping disdain and smug gloating. Who could have imagined that overnight, the Sixth Elder would be snuffed out by Yuanshi Tianzun? Furthermore, according to the official release, Yuanshi Tianzun had exacted vengeance with his own hands. The method he used to locate the Sixth Elder left the Southern Sect's Illusionists both bewildered and terrified. It was not yet clear whether Yuanshi Tianzun's retaliation would continue. If he could locate the Sixth Elder, he could surely track down other Illusionists. That was why the Southern Sect leadership instructed members to change their addresses and lie low. As for the elders, the terrifying combat strength displayed by this official prodigy filled them with wariness, even though no video of the battle had surfaced. "Yuanshi Tianzun's move scared the living daylights out of the Southern Sect's Illusionists—tsk tsk, even the elders." Looking at the discussions in the Southern Sect's main and sub-groups, Little Fatty could practically feel their panic through the screen. This filled him with the sweet thrill of revenge against the First Elder. Suddenly, another announcement was posted in the group: [Urgent Notice: To prevent Yuanshi Tianzun from continuing his retaliation against the Southern Sect, the First Elder has decided to bestow life-saving means upon Dream Masters and Illusionists. All Dream Masters must go online immediately and assemble at the Dream Hall.] Seeing this message, Little Fatty felt a chill run through him. By this time, the Southern Sect had likely pieced together the sequence of events. They knew Yuanshi Tianzun had tracked down the Sixth Elder through Jing, and not many people knew about the Sixth Elder posting a bounty for "escorts" or Jing taking the job. *The First Elder is hunting for traitors. No, the First Elder already suspects it was me...* Little Fatty didn't panic. Unplugging his phone charger, he packed his few portable belongings, swung his backpack over his shoulders, and headed out. At three in the morning, he had received Yuanshi Tianzun's text informing him of the Sixth Elder's death; he had only stayed behind to see how the Southern Sect would react. Sure enough, the First Elder immediately suspected him. "Virtuous Minister Choosing His Master to Slay" had just returned to the organization, and right away the Sixth Elder was escorted back to the Spirit Realm by Yuanshi Tianzun. Anyone with half a brain would make the connection, and the Southern Sect was an evil faction. Evil factions didn't care about evidence. They would directly restrain him, then use hypnosis, mental guidance, brainwashing, and any number of interrogation methods to extract the truth. So Little Fatty had no intention of putting on his helmet and going to the Dream Hall. His mission was complete; it was time to return to Wuhen Hotel. *If Master Wuhen hasn't returned yet, I'll figure out a way to get Xiao Yuan and the boss to move...* Carrying his backpack, Little Fatty left the temporary, secretly commandeered rental apartment that no one else knew about. *** At 9:00 a.m., Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes feeling energized. In his arms was a soft, warm, delicate body, and before his eyes lay a flash of vivid crimson. This made him swallow back the words "Sister Guan Ya." The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter was curled beside him, clinging to him like an octopus. Her glossy black hair was strewn across the pristine white pillow, bringing to mind the verse: *Dark clouds heaped on pillows, jade hairpins tumbling down.* And beneath the red dress, that slender, graceful waist had rested within his embrace throughout the entire night. Her breathing was even and slow; she was still fast asleep. A silver mask covered her face, obscuring her features, but Zhang Yuanqing figured her sleeping face underneath must be serene and sweet. *Should I take the chance to unmask her?* The moment the thought popped into his head, Zhang Yuanqing rested his hand on the mask. "Stop messing around~" A lazy voice drifted from beneath the silver mask. "Causing trouble first thing in the morning—do you want to be hung up and beaten?" A red string shot out from her dress and lightly pricked the back of his hand. Stung by the pain, Zhang Yuanqing jerked his hand back as if jolted by electricity. He muttered, "Palace Master, are you really ugly or something, afraid to show me your true face?" The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter opened her lovely eyes wide and snorted. "Have you ever seen an ugly Musician?!" A Musician's charm was capable of rivaling even the Desire class. "Fair point." Zhang Yuanqing nodded. "You must be worried that your beauty would give me an inferiority complex." "Right, right? Now hold me some more." Ever since her mental affliction had been cured, her personality had shifted slightly; occasionally, she acted like a little girl clamoring for kisses and hugs. And so, Zhang Yuanqing held her with one arm while checking his phone with the other. Before last night's operation, he had set his phone to airplane mode. Once the mission concluded, after texting Guan Ya that he was safe and sending notification to Little Fatty, he had turned airplane mode back on. Otherwise, his phone would have been ringing off the hook this morning. First, Zhang Yuanqing ignored the chat groups and replied one by one to messages from "Niulanshan Little Fairy," "Peony Fairy," "Crossing-River Pawn," and others. He also politely declined Demon Eye's invitation: "I'll take you to kill the Third Protector." Next, he answered his future mother-in-law's doting inquiries. She had heard about him hunting down the Southern Sect elder and asked with deep concern if he was injured or had suffered heavy losses. Then came praise after praise: "My boy truly is a dragon among men" and "My darling son, you're amazing!"—as if she had given birth to Zhang Yuanqing instead of Guan Ya back then. By now, Fu Xue's head was entirely filled with Yuanshi Tianzun as her son-in-law, without a single thought spared for the Miller family's foolish boy. Lately, she had not only shone brightly in high society, but also held her head high within the Fu family, even standing on equal footing with her eldest brother, who had raised Fu Qingxuan. *Sure, the daughter you raised is outstanding, but my daughter isn't bad either—look at her great taste, landing a toy boy with alliance leader potential!* Zhang Yuanqing held the Palace Master with one hand while holding his phone behind her head with the other, tapping away furiously to text Xiao Yuan and Guan Ya, professing how much he missed them while warning them strictly not to call due to his "current environment." Unable to see the phone screen behind her head, the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter asked, "Who are you chatting with?" Zhang Yuanqing replied, "Just texting my grandma." The Palace Master asked in bewilderment, "Is your grandma named Guan Ya, or is she named 'Magical Aunt Xiao Yuan'?" Zhang Yuanqing turned his head, only to realize there was a circular mirror behind him; the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter was holding a compact mirror, peeking at him typing messages. And so, Zhang Yuanqing was hung upside down by the smiling Palace Master. "When you're holding me, you'd better not flirt with other women." With an eerie smile, she reached out a finger and drew circles on his lower abdomen. "Otherwise, I'll get angry. Reflect on your behavior." With a soft *bang*, she burst into ten thousand silk ribbons and darted out through the open window. *Seriously, a lunatic is still a lunatic...* Zhang Yuanqing sighed, hugging his phone as he continued replying to messages. Five minutes later, having finished flirting with Xiao Yuan and Guan Ya, he opened the official forum. Just as he expected, the forum was in a state of sheer uproar, comparable to headlines like "Pop King Cheats with Young Model" or "Top Celebrity Caught in Surrogacy Scandal." Zhang Yuanqing was long used to it. Back when he conquered S-rank dungeons, it was low-to-mid-tier Transcendent realm walkers who were shocked, while deacons evaluated him from a haughty perch. When he defeated three Heaven's Punishment Saints in the Shiwan Dashan, it was the Saints' turn to kneel and chant "Lord Tianzun is God tier!" And now that he had slain a Dominator, it was the official elders' turn to tremble. *The old fogies at headquarters must be shocked out of their minds, especially Elder Cai. Since there's zero chance of shaking hands and making peace with him anyway, before I go into hiding, I might as well provoke him a bit more and make sure he loses sleep...* With this thought, Zhang Yuanqing started a thread: #Whoever Crosses Me, Regardless of Identity or Faction, Shall Die# *** Headquarters! Secretary Zhou kicked aside the shattered pieces of a white porcelain cup by his feet, picked up the desk phone with a dark expression, and dialed Elder Cai's number. His computer screen read: "This post does not exist." Yuanshi Tianzun's post had already been deleted. Secretary Zhou had personally phoned the forum administrators to remove it, because many low-level realm walkers had begun making baseless speculations, asserting that Yuanshi Tianzun was dropping hints about certain elders at headquarters. Those people at the bottom had no filter on their mouths, and their snide remarks were grating to the extreme. Since when did lowlifes get to point fingers at the high-and-mighty leaders holding power? Those barefoot peasants were only venting, which could be ignored, but Yuanshi Tianzun's attitude had infuriated Secretary Zhou on the spot. He knew Yuanshi Tianzun was flexing his muscles, threatening them with a velvet dagger. Since when did a mere Saint dare to be so insolent?! This was different from his past resistance. Back then, Yuanshi Tianzun's defiance had been limited to slamming tables and hurling curses; this was of an entirely different nature. The call connected. Hearing the faint sound of ocean waves from the other end, Secretary Zhou said in a heavy voice: "Leader, he is threatening us. He is telling us that all accounts, old and new, will be settled sooner or later! A mere Saint dares to threaten us! Does he really think we are nothing more than paper tigers? "Leader, we must take action." Elder Cai's cool, placid voice came through: "Xiao Zhou, are you afraid?"