Chapter 81: It Must Be Foreign Forces!

The sky was overcast.

Bao Long stepped forward with a ritual stride to the snow-white archway of Azure Cloud Gate. He lifted his foot and entered without any resistance.

He ascended the stone steps with ease.

Suddenly, the scenery changed; the steps stretched upward, seemingly endless, flanked by boundless seas of cherry blossoms.

Under the gloomy sky, the cherry blossoms appeared veiled in a thin shadow, lacking the brilliance of a sunny day and possessing a deeper, more mysterious aura.

Bao Long pressed forward with his ritual stride, his figure sweeping up the steps like the wind, leaving behind the paulownia, osmanthus, and plum blossoms.

In no time, he stood atop the steps. Before him rose two towering gatehouses and, directly ahead, the majestic main building like a palace.

In contrast to the somber sky, the entire scene seemed filtered through a lens of oppressive darkness, exuding a formidable sense of power reminiscent of a bygone empire.

Even the three faces carved into the cliff seemed to turn ferocious.

Bao Long felt a sudden unease, as if he were a lamb sent into the tiger’s den.

He shook off this thought.

The main building’s door creaked open. A tall figure stood in the doorway, speaking calmly, “Chief Bao, you’re here.”

“You knew I was coming?”

Bao Long stared at Bai Yujing, his gaze sharp as a torch.

There was not a trace of guilt on that heroic face, calm as the surface of a tranquil sea.

Bai Yujing stepped aside, making a gesture of invitation, his tone composed. “Something so significant happened to the Zhang family. I was likely the last to see Zhang Zeju, and I still hold his order. How could Six Gates not come looking for me?”

Bao Long did not beat around the bush and asked directly, “Why did Zhang Zeju ask you to find Zhang Xu, and not someone else?”

Bai Yujing answered evenly, “That night, Zhang Xu and I were both at Arena One. Zhang Zeju suspected I had kidnapped or killed his eldest son, but he didn’t want to make an enemy of me, so he asked me to help search.”

“Did you kidnap or kill Zhang Xu?” Bao Long’s gaze was as sharp as a blade, fixed on Bai Yujing.

His reputation was poor, largely because he was impartial and unwavering. Whoever broke the laws of Xia, he pursued relentlessly, never entertaining thoughts of favoritism. Even family and friends received no exception.

This iron-willed integrity made him popular with the public, but for those close to him, it was like a thorn in the flesh, unsettling.

Bai Yujing replied candidly, “My task was to protect Du Yu during the competition. As long as I dealt with threats against him, everything else was outside my concern.”

Bao Long fell silent.

From a standpoint of personal interest, Bai Yujing had no reason to act otherwise. Yet humans are not cold creatures driven solely by profit; emotions, hatred, and impulses can all serve as motives.

Nonetheless, Bao Long was a man of evidence, and Xia’s legal system followed the principle of presumed innocence.

Bao Long did not leave immediately. He stepped forward and said, “Since there’s nothing pressing, perhaps you could help me review this case for any oversight by Six Gates.”

He called it a review, but in truth, he wanted to detain Bai Yujing.

Six Gates still had a trump card yet to play.

Whether this most prominent suspect was innocent would soon be revealed.

Bai Yujing glanced at Bao Long, sensing his ulterior motives, but was unconcerned.

He was thoroughly prepared; there could be no evidence implicating Liu Shuangling and her companions.

...

Most cases handled by Six Gates were solved by tracking spiritual pressure or unique clues from manifestations, awakenings, or releases.

When these standard methods failed, Six Gates had a secret technique left: divination.

Wei Jia was the resident diviner of Six Gates.

In the trade of divination, whatever the subject, it meant peering into the threads of fate.

Yet fate varied in magnitude.

The greater the secret, the heavier the price paid.

The stronger the diviner, the more likely their demise.

But the allure of glimpsing fate was irresistible. Every spirit master with talent in this realm pursued it, none ever relinquishing the calling.

Like moths to a flame, they plunged into the river of predestined destiny.

...

Six Gates, rear courtyard.

Wei Jia sat upright on a stone bench by the pond, the water reflecting the gray sky, ripples shimmering across the surface.

A school of koi gathered at the pond’s edge.

He held a handful of fish feed, scattering it slowly over the water, causing the koi to jostle and splash for the food.

The Chief Inspector appeared in the courtyard with a ritual stride, gazing at the elderly man by the pond—white-haired, deeply wrinkled, seemingly frail and aged.

He appeared older and weaker than himself.

Yet Wei Jia was only three hundred years old.

For a ninth-tier spirit master, that age should have been the prime of life. Excessive exposure to fate had aged Wei Jia’s appearance.

“We must trouble you once more, Master Wei.”

“Chief Inspector, your words insult me. Dispelling evil has always been my dream. Becoming like this, I have no regrets.”

Wei Jia turned slowly.

A constable attending him quickly brought over a low table, placing spirit tools shaped like tortoise shells on top.

The Chief Inspector, normally formidable in the presence of others, now bowed his head. “Forgive me, I misspoke.”

“It’s nothing. I forgive you. Place the Zhang family’s personal item on the table.”

The Chief Inspector immediately drew a toothbrush used by a member of the Zhang family from his pocket and carefully set it on the table.

Wei Jia placed his hand on the tortoise shell, channeling spiritual pressure into it. The inscriptions on its surface flickered, transforming into golden threads that wrapped around the toothbrush.

Wisps of intangible aura unseen by others were drawn out, as if threads of fate interwove in the air.

He closed his eyes, and chaotic visions flashed through his mind—like shattered dreams or torn fragments of space and time.

Within those visions were blurred figures, flickering lights, twisted realms, until finally a terrifying skull let out a silent roar at him.

Wei Jia grunted, the tortoise shell beneath his hand cracked with a snap, and he withdrew from the state of divination.

“Master Wei, are you alright?” The Chief Inspector immediately became anxious.

Spirit masters with divination abilities of the ninth tier were rare in Xia—losing even one would be a tremendous blow.

Wei Jia shook his head and slowly withdrew his hand from the tortoise shell, his face grave. “I cannot divine the location of the killer. Someone is interfering with my divination. All I can be certain of is that the culprit either uses a manifestation or a monster’s ability, or their mastery of divination inscriptions surpasses mine.”

The Chief Inspector’s expression grew somber. “It seems the killer belongs to a powerful organization.”

Training a spirit master skilled in divination was extremely difficult, requiring vast resources—unless someone could master the scriptures at a glance, which was impossible.

Geniuses like Wei Jia had been cultivated by Six Gates at great expense.

Thus, the Chief Inspector concluded that a formidable force lay behind this case.

He thought of the incident on St. James Island, suspecting that foreign powers were behind the scenes.

Domestically...

If such a terrifying organization could hide right under their noses, undetected for so long, then Six Gates, the Brocade Guards, and the Shadowmen would be nothing but useless gluttons.

But they clearly weren’t.

If it was foreign influence, what was their goal?

Why did Zhang Jiacheng meet with Fred? Was their main target the Crimson Queen?

The Chief Inspector could not unravel the conspiracy, but understood that Bai Yujing was not involved.

If Bai Yujing had ties to such a powerful foreign organization, he would not be so suspicious.

It was simply bad luck—one misfortune after another.

He messaged Bao Long: “This has little to do with Bai Yujing. The killer is part of a formidable foreign organization. Hurry back and continue investigating the Zhang family’s relationships.”