The Taiyin Sect Is Far Too Shady

Four in the morning. All operations concluded. The mutated martial artist had been intercepted by the Mysterious Affairs Section and killed on the spot. Furthermore, in the hidden subterranean chamber beneath the nightclub, a large group of underground cultists had been rounded up and arrested. The operation plan had been executed to perfection. It could even be called an overwhelming triumph. Five in the morning. Ye Huan returned to the Mysterious Affairs Section office at the Bureau of Investigation and collapsed onto the sofa, immediately falling fast asleep. Song Fushan, on the other hand, went to attend the debriefing. At the meeting, reports from various divisions came in rapid succession: "On our end, we arrested seven fugitive murderers and have already transferred them to the police department." "You have the cheek to boast about catching ordinary people? We captured nine mid-tier leaders from the Black Tide Cult, and one of them knows sacrificial arts." "Reporting, Bureau Director! Our team accompanied you all the way into the underground chamber. We eliminated nineteen individuals along the way, four of whom were martial artists. We believe they were all members of the Black Tide Cult and are currently verifying their identities." An elderly man sat at the head of the table, quietly listening to the comprehensive reports. At a certain moment, he seemed to grow slightly impatient and spoke up: "That mutated martial artist took a palm strike from me. Which department delivered the finishing shots later on?" Silence fell over the room. Xia Li, the director of the general office, had already mastered all the operational data. Smiling, she spoke up: "It was the Mysterious Affairs Section." "Oh? Young Shan did it? Never mind, let me take a look at it anyway. I don't want any messes cropping up down the line," the old man said. "Yes, sir. Please view the surveillance footage from the scene," Xia Li replied. A segment of surveillance footage was projected onto the wall. A man clad in a police uniform could be seen stumbling and dashing toward the Underground River Bridge. Song Fushan raised his sniper rifle and fired. Ye Huan followed up with suppressive fire. The two alternated their attacks, finally finishing the man off. "Hmph, after taking a palm strike from me, he was practically dead already. You lot merely picked up an easy credit," the old man teased. His tone was no longer stiff and rigid, carrying a hint of banter instead. —The Bureau Director was in a good mood! Everyone quietly breathed a sigh of relief, casting envious glances toward Song Fushan at the same time. On the screen, the man collapsed. Yet Song Fushan continued speaking to his subordinate before clapping him on the shoulder. "What did they say?" the old man asked. "There is networked audio from the tactical monitoring feed. I'll pull it up immediately," Xia Li said. A moment later, voices came through the speakers: "That really scared the hell out of me just now." "Weren't you afraid he might have been an actual cop?" Song Fushan asked. Ye Huan gave an honest, naive smile and replied, "Even if it were someone from our own Bureau of Investigation crashing through our checkpoint like that, they'd still have to die." "Why?" Song Fushan asked. "The Bureau Director's order was to hold this bridge and 'let no one pass.'" "That's right, that's precisely it." The old man nodded reflexively, then suddenly asked, "Who is this kid?" "Bureau Director, sir, this is the security guard you personally promoted from the mining district back then," Xia Li said. "Someone I promoted... Ah, right, there was such a thing..." the old man recalled. "Investigation Section One is still undergoing isolated review, so he was temporarily assigned to the Mysterious Affairs Section," Xia Li explained. "Mm. A probationary investigator, not bad—this kid handles things reliably," the old man praised. "Commend him with a Third-Class Merit." "Understood, Director!" Xia Li replied. The footage rolled on. Song Fushan ultimately eliminated the mutated martial artist. Applause broke out across the conference room. The atmosphere turned lively. With the mission concluded so successfully, everyone could finally breathe easy! The old man clapped along a few times before speaking: "Young Shan, you neutralized the mutated martial artist. The Bureau will grant you a commendation in accordance with the regulations. If you have any specific requests, speak freely." Song Fushan straightened his posture, his expression solemn and his voice ringing with conviction: "I need no commendation!" "Then what do you want?" The old man cut his eyes at him sideways. "Being able to serve at your side and constantly contemplate the true essence of martial arts is the greatest reward I could ever receive, Bureau Director!" Everyone in the room lowered their heads. This shameless scoundrel—he must have poured every drop of his martial talent into perfecting the art of brown-nosing. "Enough! Rewarding merit and punishing faults is our Bureau's tradition. Cut the bullshit!" the old man couldn't help but scold with a laugh. Though he cursed, he was smiling. —And it was a genuine smile of delight. Naturally, the old man knew Song Fushan was flattering him. However, Song Fushan had indeed sniped and killed that mutated martial artist, preventing the mutant's escape. In truth, such mutated martial artists enjoyed the favor of their 'deity' and had managed to survive a direct palm strike from him. Had the creature managed to slip away, it would have spelled an utter catastrophe. Flattery coming from a subordinate who had just performed a critical service was still thoroughly delightful to hear. "As for your reward... let me think on it a bit more," the old man mused thoughtfully. *** Nine in the morning. The sound of the door lock turning roused Ye Huan from his sleep. "Section Chief?" Ye Huan yawned, clambering up from the sofa to greet Song Fushan, who had just stepped inside. "I brought you some fried noodles and a drink." Song Fushan set the plastic bag on the desk. Along with it came a newspaper reeking of fresh ink. The eye-catching headline read: *Bureau of Investigation Destroys Cult Gathering Site, Arrests Cultists Responsible for Yesterday's Broad-Daylight Prison Break!* Ye Huan hadn't read a newspaper in a very long time. However, this world treated the news with utmost gravity. If any false information was published openly in a newspaper and subsequently exposed— The fabricator of the news would be hanged by the neck. Consequently, even with mobile phones and news apps, newspapers still held an indisputable authority. Ye Huan glanced over the paper and said, "Thanks, Chief. How could I dare trouble you to fetch breakfast for me?" "Don't mention it. You worked hard last night too," Song Fushan waved off the comment. "It wasn't hard at all. Being able to stay by Chief's side and learn from your—" "Stop! Eat first." "Yes, sir." Ye Huan opened the container. The noodles inside were still steaming hot, and a sausage had been added on top. He truly was starving. He opened the drink first, taking a few sips to awaken his appetite before twirling the fried noodles around his chopsticks and shoveling them into his mouth. So fragrant. Truly delicious. Having a leader who was a foodie was also a blessing in its own right. Following him meant never having to worry about good food. "The person we killed last night was the mutated martial artist. He was disguised," Song Fushan remarked. "Such good luck?" Ye Huan asked, genuinely surprised. The small text floating above that man's head had identified him as a 'Dark Tide Priest.' —In other words, the mutated martial artist had been an operative of the Black Tide Cult all along. What were they trying to accomplish by infiltrating the mine tunnels? "To be honest, the Bureau Director had already crippled him, which was why we were able to take him down. You could say we lucked out," Song Fushan said. *Knock, knock, knock!* Someone tapped on the door. "Come in!" Xia Li walked in to find both of them sitting upright, staring solemnly at the computer screen as though reviewing an important document or resolving some critical dilemma. "Ah, Director Xia is here," Song Fushan greeted her. "Hello, Sister Li," Ye Huan chimed in. The corner of Xia Li's mouth twitched slightly as she said softly, "Ye Huan, once you're done here, come by my office to collect your reward." "I get a reward?" Ye Huan asked in astonishment. "For assisting in neutralizing the mutated martial artist and preventing his escape, you've been awarded a Third-Class Merit. The Bureau Director stated it himself," Xia Li said. "I'll come with you right away." "No need. Don't let your fried noodles get cold. Come over after you finish eating. I happen to have some business to attend to outside anyway." "Understood, Sister Li." The door clicked shut. Ye Huan pulled the fried noodles back out of the drawer and continued eating, remarking with genuine admiration, "Sister Li is so capable, keeping the entire Bureau running like clockwork, and she's so young too." —She even smelled the noodles I hid away without missing a beat. Song Fushan picked up the thread: "She's from an elite sect, sent out into the world to gain experience. Stationing her in a remote backwater like ours is already an underuse of her talents." "She came from a sect? What happened to our previous office director?" Ye Huan asked. Song Fushan spread his hands. "The previous office director died, leaving the seat vacant. Several people were eyeing it hungrily, pulling strings and scheming against one another behind the scenes. What a pity, though—" "The moment Xia Li arrived, the Bureau Director dropped her straight into that chair." "Not a single person dared utter half a word of complaint." "Elite sects hold that much deterrence?" Ye Huan asked. "Nonsense, martial artists who emerge from places like that aren't people ordinary folks can compare to," Song Fushan said. Ye Huan nodded. A sect! The word seemed imbued with a certain magic. Neither of them spoke further. After finishing his fried noodles, Ye Huan downed the drink in one gulp, rinsed his mouth, washed his face, and then headed toward the administrative office. *Knock, knock, knock!* "Come in." The door opened. Ye Huan walked in with a beaming smile. "Sister Li." Xia Li sat behind her desk, looking solemn as she reviewed a document. —Unlike Song Fushan and Ye Huan, she was genuinely reading the files. "You're just in time. The Third-Class Merit commendation offers three choices; you can pick for yourself." Xia Li pushed her keyboard aside, stood up, stretched lightly, and spoke to Ye Huan in a conversational tone: "Were you nervous when you fired last night?" "It was alright. I was just following orders, so there wasn't much to overthink," Ye Huan replied. A smile graced Xia Li's face. There were far too many matters within the Bureau of Investigation to attend to. Even for her, sitting there constantly handling various administrative affairs and studying policy documents became tedious after a while. Standing and chatting with Ye Huan about work was a welcome form of relaxation. "The options for the commendation are as follows: "First is material compensation: a cash payout along with allocated housing. "Second is applied toward personnel assessment: an immediate one-rank promotion and a martial technique manual. "Third is to defer it for now; once you accumulate sufficient merits, you can apply for an external training placement. "You need to choose one from among these." Ye Huan listened quietly, then asked with a smile, "Which one do you think I should pick, Sister Li?" Xia Li answered casually, "Originally, the third option was the best, as it allows you to study at a sect. However, over the past two years, the Bureau switched its partner sect. It's now the Taiyin Sect." "Is the Taiyin Sect lacking in strength?" Ye Huan asked. "No, the Taiyin Sect is renowned throughout the world, which is why it qualifies to partner with imperial investigative agencies," Xia Li explained. "Then..." Ye Huan hesitated. "The Taiyin Sect is far too shady." Xia Li looked at him with an expression akin to watching a harmless little animal. "An honest, obedient kid like you would definitely get bullied there. If you accidentally practiced the wrong cultivation method, your entire life would be ruined." "Then I won't pick that one," Ye Huan said with a grin.