"A potioneer?" Hearing the title, Qiu Tu blinked, his gaze landing on the young girl.
Perhaps hearing the two men discussing her, she bared her teeth at Qiu Tu with a vicious scowl.
Unfortunately, she was too young, and with her two little canines, all Qiu Tu saw was endearing petulance.
"Xiafang Street... Xiafang Street..." Qiu Tu muttered the name under his breath twice before suddenly remembering why it sounded so familiar.
Wasn't this the assignment Yan Chen had ordered him to handle yesterday, which he had turned down?
So this girl was the very prisoner he had originally been supposed to pick up?
At that realization, Qiu Tu couldn't help but marvel at the coincidence. He asked casually, "By the way, where is she being taken?"
Perhaps the question touched on a sensitive matter, as Fang Ming hesitated, unsure how to answer.
In the midst of the awkward silence, Fang Ming's eyes suddenly fell upon Qiu Tu's new uniform.
He froze for an instant, then pointed at the uniform in astonishment. "You got transferred to the Political Department?"
Qiu Tu gave a mild nod.
Fang Ming glanced at Qiu Tu's epaulets, and a second later, his shock deepened. "A Rank 1 agent? You even got promoted?!"
Qiu Tu gave another mild nod.
Fang Ming opened his mouth, trying to find words, but nothing came out. After opening and closing his mouth several times, he finally choked out a single word: "Insane."
Now that he understood Qiu Tu's new posting, Fang Ming no longer skirted the topic and answered directly, "She's being taken to the Jiuxiang Street security post for temporary detention."
The Political Department held supervisory authority over every branch, so answering Qiu Tu's inquiry was fully within regulation.
"Jiuxiang Street?" Hearing the location, Qiu Tu paused, falling into deep thought.
With that, the two exchanged a couple more pleasantries before ending their conversation amid the girl's indignant shouting: "Are you two going to move or what?!" "Could you be any less professional?!" "Don't criminals have human rights too?!"
Bidding Fang Ming farewell, Qiu Tu entered the villa. Following the directions from Jia Shu's communication through several twists and turns, he soon found a flight of stone stairs.
Walking down the steps, he reached a massive oak door reinforced with iron fittings at the bottom, looking ancient and solemn.
Qiu Tu stopped, raised his hand to rap the iron knocker against the wood, and Jia Shu's voice promptly called from within, "Come in."
Qiu Tu pushed the door open and stepped inside, only to find a vast subterranean chamber.
The walls were constructed of rough-hewn stone. In the center stood an oak workbench scored with blade scratches and caked with dried blood, surrounded by an assortment of blades and torture instruments.
A young girl covered in wounds and showing no signs of life was strapped to the oak table. Beside her stood Jia Shu in his gold-rimmed glasses, wearing a glove on his left hand and holding a scalpel in his right, carefully dissecting her corpse.
The tip of the blade traced along bone, peeling back flesh and exposing internal organs. His movements were precise to the point of reverence, as though he were conducting a silent ritual.
A hanging lamp swayed overhead, casting a dim, harsh light that fractured light and shadow into eerie geometric patterns. A faint scent of rust and fresh blood hung heavy in the air.
The hellish scene nearly unsettled even someone like Qiu Tu, who had seen his share of high-stakes situations in his previous life.
After a long silence, a soft, inexplicable sigh broke from Jia Shu. "What a pity..."
He laid the scalpel aside, stripped off the glove, and washed his hands in a nearby basin.
The clear water gradually clouded with red, turning into what looked like a basin of pure blood.
He remarked indifferently, "This girl's parents were originally low-level administrators at City Hall. She could have had a brilliant future, attending school and playing alongside the children of other administrators..."
"Then, once grown, she could have fallen into a sweet romance, married, had children, and lived an ordinary yet happy life... Yet yesterday's investigation revealed that her parents had been secretly contacting and assisting anti-government insurgents."
"And so, a blossom that should have flourished withered away just like that..."
Though every word Jia Shu uttered conveyed regret, when paired with his flat tone and the chilling brutality with which he had personally tortured and executed the girl, a creeping chill seeped straight into Qiu Tu's heart.
After delivering the girl's background in that cold, detached manner, Jia Shu picked up a towel, wiped his hands, and folded it neatly away.
He then walked to a cabinet against the wall, opened it, pulled out a familiar cloth bundle, and tossed it across the room to Qiu Tu.
"You saw that potioneer on your way in, didn't you?"
Qiu Tu paused, then nodded. "I did."
A faint, meaningful smile curved Jia Shu's lips. "The director approved your plan, though he made a minor adjustment."
"Cataclysm materials are controlled goods. They can't simply be handed out on a whim to assist with your mission. So, that black-market potioneer is yours."
"Not only does she possess the knowledge to brew Cataclysm potions, she also has black-market ties. Her value far exceeds mere Cataclysm materials. It will be more than enough to satisfy the Qin family."
Hearing this, Qiu Tu felt his heart skip a beat.
A potioneer was indeed more valuable than raw Cataclysm materials, but nowhere near as convenient.
With raw materials in hand, if things went south, he could simply cut and run.
But a living, breathing person—and a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl at that—would drastically increase the difficulty and danger if he had to flee with her in tow.
Had Yan Chen guessed that he might try to run, intentionally saddling him with a deadweight?
While Qiu Tu's mind raced, he didn't forget to keep up the act with Jia Shu. "Cataclysm potions? A potioneer? What are those?"
Jia Shu adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and replied dismissively, "All of those questions are answered in the files inside the bundle. You can read through them at your leisure."
"By the way, remember to destroy them after reading and maintain strict confidentiality."
With that, he fixed Qiu Tu with a piercing gaze and added coldly, "You won't want to know the consequences of a leak..."
Qiu Tu remained silent.
Having delivered his warning, Jia Shu waved his hand to dismiss him. "All right, take the files outside and read them."
"Once you're done, remember to find Qin Shuman and persuade her to return to the Qin family."
"The director's patience is not limitless."
"Yes, Sir!" Qiu Tu snapped his heels together and threw a crisp salute.
With the salute given, Qiu Tu took the cloth bundle and walked out of the subterranean chamber.
What he didn't know was that behind him, Jia Shu's gaze followed his retreating back like a clinging shadow, the hunger concealed behind his lenses threatening to spill over from the depths of his eyes...
[9:03:18 (Treasure Chest)]
Stepping out of the basement, the crisp scent of earth and fallen leaves rushed over him, a stark contrast to the suffocating stench of blood down below.
Qiu Tu drew in a deep breath of the chill air, glanced up at the overcast gray sky, and made his way back into the villa.
Guided by a servant, he took a seat in a reception room, preparing to review the intelligence Jia Shu had provided regarding this world's extraordinary powers.
This would be crucial to his upcoming plans...
Chapter 16