Ripples in the Calm
Yu Sheng's opinion received everyone's support—after all, it was widely acknowledged that someone who could talk a Dark Angel to death was indeed a professional in the field of combating Dark Angels...
"When do you plan to set out?" Xuan Che asked, looking curiously into Yu Sheng's eyes. "If you're just heading to a nearby planet, there shouldn't be any need to use the Exotic Traveler. I can have the city lord here arrange a spirit boat."
"No rush. We just fought those black-robed men and gained a lot of new intelligence. We need at least a day to rest—and I have some other plans during this time," Yu Sheng waved his hand. "As for the spirit boat... I think we should just let Hu Li run over there. Don't involve that 'city lord' in this."
Xuan Che nodded, then immediately realized: "...You think that city lord has issues?"
"Not necessarily 'issues,' but I find him somewhat unreliable," Yu Sheng thought seriously. "Ever since we landed on this planet, I've felt that many things are off. Maybe it's as you said—the city lord of Mo City and the 'Star Guardian Elder' of this planet have been negligent, failing to notice the shadows right under their noses. But I still think... there's another reason for their slow reaction."
"...Could they have already switched sides!?" Zheng Zhi grew tense. "Could that city lord already be Yun Qingzi's man—aren't we in danger then?"
"It shouldn't come to that. Before I made contact with City Lord Mo Ran, I set up a Heart-Questioning Spirit Array around her, and during our interaction, I constantly probed her aura and divine sense changes—there were no issues," Xuan Che shook his head. "I had already considered the concerns Mr. Yu mentioned. But from my observation, that city lord's cultivation isn't high. Even if she's skilled at hiding and disguising, it's unlikely she could conceal it from me so flawlessly."
"Regardless, we need to be as careful as possible here—after all, no one knows how deeply Yun Qingzi has infiltrated this planet, and now we've discovered that members of the Sublime Sanctuary Cult have also infiltrated," Yu Sheng said slowly. "The cult members hidden in Xu Ji can't only have that one High Priest. Now that we've taken out the leader, the remaining cultists will definitely react."
Xuan Che nodded, nine-tenths of his face serious.
Yu Sheng's gaze then swept around.
"I've already reported the situation here to the bureau," Zheng Zhi spoke up before Yu Sheng could ask. "I'll file an additional report later, including the Dark Angel situation."
"I've already informed my junior brothers to investigate the recent flow of people leaving Tai Xu Ling Shu for Xu Ji," True Person Yuan Hao followed up. "The situation with those two celestial foxes might not be an isolated case. If Yun Qingzi's 'corruption' really projected onto Tai Xu Star when the Demon Suppression Tower lost control, then quite a number of people should have been affected at that time... If necessary, we can issue a Five Sect Emergency Order to intercept all spirit boats heading for Xu Ji recently, to prevent the situation from worsening."
Yu Sheng nodded lightly, feeling much more reassured upon hearing these arrangements.
"Let's stop here for now," he exhaled softly, rising from the sofa. "Everyone's tired. Let's rest first. We'll talk about anything else tomorrow."
The group rose, preparing to head to their rooms. Elin had been sitting in the middle of the room, bored and spacing out, but when she saw that Yu Sheng's group had finally finished their boring business, she immediately got up happily and walked over. "Hey, you're finally done! I was about to fall asleep from listening..."
Xuan Che was just rounding the coffee table to head back to his room, not paying attention to where he was stepping. The 66.6-centimeter-tall doll walking over, looking like a short, squat gourd, was easy to trip over if not careful. And she just happened to walk right into his blind spot next to the coffee table. So in the next second, Yu Sheng watched helplessly as Senior Brother stepped out and tripped over Elin's head...
"Ah—"
He only had time to raise a hand to block, and then he saw a flash of light.
In fact, the entire room lit up.
Dazzling arcs of electricity filled with purple spiritual light exploded in the room with a bang. The powerful electric field that suddenly spread through the air made everyone's hair stand on end. A "divine thunder" that even immortals couldn't withstand erupted out of nowhere, blasting Xuan Che straight up and flying—Yu Sheng saw a figure flash in the intense light, and by the time he realized it, Senior Brother was already on the ceiling.
Half a second later, Xuan Che crashed to the ground with a thud.
Elin also rolled on the ground from the massive recoil, but then she immediately sat up with a bounce, staring blankly around. Only then did she belatedly realize what had happened, and happily pounced toward Yu Sheng: "Hey Yu Sheng, I've discharged my electricity!"
"Stop thinking about your discharge!" Yu Sheng's hair was still standing on end. He reached out and caught the little doll mid-air as she lunged at him, then broke into a cold sweat as he looked toward where Xuan Che had landed. "Damn, are you okay!?"
Xuan Che struggled to get up from the ground, dazed. Yu Sheng called out to him twice before he blinked, then looked with half his face confused at the doll in Yu Sheng's hands. After a long pause, he finally managed to blurt out a muddled sentence: "...Why is this?"
"I'm curious too!" Yu Sheng was even more confused. "When we get touched by her, it's just a snap of static. How come you got blown away and lost half your life in one go..."
Just then, True Person Yuan Hao, who had been watching seriously from the sidelines, finally spoke. The old handsome man looked thoughtfully at his junior nephew, who had barely recovered but now had half his face numb again from the electric shock: "...Che'er, what cultivation realm are you at now?"
Xuan Che's mind was still a bit fuzzy, and he answered instinctively: "I've reached the peak of the Soul Formation stage, but I haven't glimpsed the Dao Seeking realm yet..."
"Oh, then it's still a while until your next great tribulation..." True Person Yuan Hao stroked his chin. "But you can prepare in advance. Ask your master to stock up on pills and artifacts for guiding heavenly thunder and strengthening your physique. With your constitution, when you go through the Dao Seeking tribulation, it's almost certain to be a lightning tribulation."
Xuan Che was stunned: "...But my master said I'd most likely face a spiritual tribulation?"
True Person Yuan Hao's eyes widened. "Your master was absolutely certain he'd face a mortal world tribulation back then! He prepared for ten years, only to get struck by thunder for three days and three nights on the road down the mountain into the mortal realm—who do you believe, him or me?"
Xuan Che instinctively wanted to say he believed his master, but after looking at this senior uncle, who had experienced many emotional tribulations and still maintained an excellent mindset, he swallowed the words that had reached the tip of his tongue (or perhaps it was because he saw the doll dangling from Yu Sheng's hand). He lowered his head awkwardly, half his face embarrassed: "I, I understand."
Yu Sheng listened with his mouth agape. Although he understood nothing about the ways of these cultivators, he could still tell this was serious—but he didn't dare ask for details.
After all, True Person Yuan Ling's embarrassing history had been dragged out. It would be rude to pry at a time like this.
...
"The above is the recent work situation of the Second Brigade. No major cases have occurred recently. Order is good within the , and the several key controlled foreign domains are relatively stable."
Inside the Director's office deep within the Special Service Bureau building in , Song Cheng was standing in front of Bai Li Qing's desk reporting the situation. As he spoke, he secretly studied the director's expression.
Still no expression—the director sat behind the desk with her usual poker face, immaculate as a perfectly carved statue. Only the occasional nod betrayed a hint of humanity.
But as a seasoned veteran of the Special Service Bureau who had dealt with Bai Li Qing for years, Song Cheng still detected a trace of... relaxation and pleasure beneath that rigid exterior.
"How's the situation in the Fog City?" Bai Li Qing suddenly asked.
Song Cheng quickly averted his gaze and answered swiftly: "Exploration is continuing, progress is steady. We've roughly grasped the spawning patterns of entities in the Fog and the activity range of most dangerous entities. We've set up forty-six 'safe houses' and corresponding extraction points within Fog City, and installed semi-permanent communication equipment. Next, we plan to open exploration permissions for a few dense fog blocks and most light fog blocks, allowing more spirit world detectives and investigators to assist in exploration or collect materials from the Fog."
"Mm." Bai Li Qing nodded lightly.
Then the office fell into a momentary silence.
After a few seconds, Song Cheng heard the director exhale softly.
"Recently... it's been very peaceful," Bai Li Qing said softly.
"Yeah, it's been quite peaceful recently," Song Cheng smiled. "Especially compared to the previous period."
"The only thing worth noting seems to be that operation at the 'Gloomy Cottage' the other day, right?"
"Right, after all it involved the 'Ancient Ones,' " Song Cheng nodded. "Other than that, there haven't been any major cases."
The two chatted a bit like this, then both fell silent at the same time—as if savoring the momentary peace.
It feels so good when nothing is happening. No one suddenly opens a door through the Borderlands, and no Dark Angel falls from the sky.
"How's that newcomer Zheng Zhi doing?" Bai Li Qing leaned back in her chair, her posture relaxed as she asked casually.
"He's been reporting normally, seems to be growing fast," Song Cheng said with a smile. "He was taken to the Feiyu Star Field, so far away, without really knowing what was happening. For all the newcomers in the past, that should be considered an absolutely explosive internship experience."
"A 'newcomer,' huh," Bai Li Qing murmured to herself, almost like an afterthought. "...That's good too."
Song Cheng blinked, seeming about to say something, but just then, the vibration of a phone interrupted him.
He took out his phone and looked at it, and in the next second, his expression changed.
Bai Li Qing immediately noticed the change in his expression. "Hmm?"
"Zheng Zhi sent a message," Song Cheng slowly raised his head, his tone very complicated. "At Yu Sheng's side..."
Bai Li Qing changed her posture almost instantly. "Is he coming back?"
"...They've run into another Dark Angel over there."
Bai Li Qing: "..."