Volume 1, Chapter 289 – Heavy Rain

Shi Lan’s supply of flesh and blood had been cut off for a spell, and that inevitably left her feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

Liang Yunnan had been contacting Shi Lan more and more frequently over the past few days, because the current situation had never existed in the original storyline. Everything had already fallen completely into chaos.

In truth, the current disorder did not have all that much to do with Shi Lan. The changes Lin Mo had brought about were even greater instead. After all, the key to opening the treasure was now within his flesh and blood.

…

Rumble…

Thunder rolled across the sky. It was the height of summer, and a long spell of gloomy rain shrouded the entire county town, washing away the smoke that filled the heavens.

On an upper floor of a hotel not far from Ning An’s home, Lin Mo slowly opened his eyes.

In just a short time, the aura around him had undergone a complete transformation.

Lin Mo had long since understood the fierce fighting outside. As long as the key to the treasure was in his hands, the current situation could be called inevitable.

But none of that mattered anymore. During this period, he had already obtained more than enough information from the phone calls on ‘Ning An’s’ cell phone, and had more or less figured out what kind of existence he really was.

“Child of Fortune…”

A cold sneer tugged at Lin Mo’s lips. As he looked at the storm clouds churning across the sky outside the window, a trace of ferocity flashed across his face.

“Fuck all of that…”

…

Under the torrential rain, the long-awaited trouble finally came knocking.

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Ning Kangping had gone missing. He had gone out in the morning and never returned, with no word of his whereabouts.

Late at night, the living room was deathly silent, with only the faint rumble of thunder outside the window.

Shi Lan sat facing Qin Yinhua.

Qin Yinhua’s face was somewhat pale. Shi Lan had just revealed part of the truth to her, but the sheer amount of information was too overwhelming, like a bolt from the blue, and she simply could not take it in.

Knock… knock knock…

While the silence lingered, the sound of knocking came from outside the door.

Shi Lan rose and walked toward the entryway.

“I’ll bring him back.”

“Wait…”

Qin Yinhua froze for a moment, then hurriedly stood and followed after her, flustered as she said,

“Thank you…”

Without turning around, Shi Lan gave a slight shake of her head and opened the door.

Standing outside were Liang Yunnan and the other three. Shi Lan had called them here to help look after Qin Yinhua’s safety.

“Lin Mo suddenly disappeared and cut off contact with us. Something’s probably wrong. Be careful.”

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Liang Yunnan spoke up to warn her.

Shi Lan nodded slightly and looked back at Qin Yinhua.

“Sorry to trouble you.”

“It is our duty.”

Beep beep—

Shi Lan passed by the four of them and walked out the door. As she brushed past them, a few short warning sounds suddenly came from Xue Qiong’s body.

“What is it?”

Shi Lan frowned. Xue Qiong pulled a faintly glowing metal sphere from his pocket, his expression changing slightly as he said,

“This is a simple anti-surveillance device.”

A great many things in their conversations and phone calls were not meant for the world to know. Once leaked, they could cause enormous upheaval in the mission world.

Because of that, Liang Yunnan and the others had always been especially careful about secrecy, but Shi Lan had never had any awareness of that at all.

Shi Lan was silent for a moment, then took her phone out of her pocket. As the phone drew closer, the light on the metal sphere grew brighter and brighter.

Crack—

Expressionless, Shi Lan crushed the phone in her hand. Amid the heap of fragments, a tiny listening device stood out with startling clarity.

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“This…”

The expressions of Liang Yunnan and the others all changed.

“Take care of her.”

Shi Lan brushed the debris from her hand, stepped out of the house, and left, her mood turning a little grim.

She rarely let that phone out of her possession. The only time had been that night. At the time, when she felt someone was watching her, it had not been an illusion.

If nothing unexpected had happened, the person who planted the bug was Lin Mo.

If it had been someone from another faction, then after hearing so much about Lin Mo, there was no way he could still have remained safe and sound until now.

They had all been played.

…

In a remote, abandoned factory on the outskirts of the county town.

Most of the people there were covered in dust, with traces of blood visible here and there. They had obviously gone through quite a few clashes.

Ning Kangping, who had been missing for an entire day, sat on a wooden stool. Standing directly opposite him was Luo Jin.

Luo Jin wore a black, old-style martial robe that was likewise dust-stained. His eyes shone like torches, and he stood upright like a sharp steel spear. His aura was released without the slightest concealment, and the currents it stirred made his robe snap loudly in the wind.

The moment the Wuji Sect entered the fray, it almost instantly became the target of everyone present. As soon as he arrived here, he had already gone through several fierce battles. He had even run into three grandmasters of the Blood Transformation Realm, figures who were normally as elusive as dragons that showed the head but not the tail.

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He had been at the peak of the Blood Transformation Realm for many years. Without exception, all three had fallen beneath his hand one after another. But after battle upon battle, even his blood and qi had become somewhat unstable, and he could no longer suppress his aura.

“Chief Ning, I have no grudge with you. I have only come this time to seek justice. Two disciples of my Wuji Sect died here. Was it your daughter who did it?”

Luo Jin’s speech carried an old-fashioned air, as though he were a wandering hero from ancient times, and it gave him a natural bearing of dignity.

“Ning An is only a child still in school. How could she possibly do such a thing? You must be joking.”

Ning Kangping shook his head slightly and forced a bitter smile, looking utterly ignorant of the matter, but his increasingly violent heartbeat exposed what he was truly thinking.

Listening to the thunderous pounding of Ning Kangping’s heart, Luo Jin could not help but reveal a faint smile.

“Then I must trouble you to call your daughter and ask her to come here and take you home.”

“There’s no need to—”

The phone, already dialing Ning An’s number, was held out in front of Ning Kangping, cutting off the rest of his words.

Luo Jin stood with his hands clasped behind his back and said nothing more. This was no longer the age when roaming warriors could defy the law with force. Under the torrent of steel, any martial artist would have to die in hatred, unless he could take that final step…

A trace of anxiety flashed through Ning Kangping’s eyes. Ning An was only a child. For some reason, she had merely become a bit stronger, but there was no way she could be a match for these powerful people. Yet the call had already gone through.

“Beep—The number you have dialed is powered off…”

Hearing the voice coming from the phone, Ning Kangping could not help but let out a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to speak, someone outside came running in and reported respectfully,

“Sect Master, Ning An has left the house.”