26th March, 16th Year of the Great Emperor Era
Lei returned to his camp in Shanluo City. It was a simple, temporary setup built in a wooded hollow, with various tents set up outside. A few hidden formations were laid quietly around the perimeter, just enough to hide their tracks and keep local wild beasts from wandering into the tents and becoming a nuisance.
Inside his tent, one of his followers was waiting by the table, holding a small bamboo tube sealed with wax.
"Senior," Han Ji said respectfully. "A message just came in from Prince Jin Bo's contacts."
Lei took the tube, cracked the wax seal, and unrolled the slip of paper inside. "What did they find?"
"The Prince's scouts picked up some strange movement around Nanyu City two days ago," he explained. "A small group sneaked in through the back routes instead of using the main gates. They were actively hiding their tracks and dodging anyone around the area."
Lei scanned the short message. "Where are they now?"
"They locked themselves inside a private, dilapidated compound on the edge of the city."
Lei's grip on the paper tightened slightly.
"The Prince's men are asking if they should move in and surround the place," the follower added.
"No," Lei said, dropping the paper onto the table. "Don't worry about it. I will handle the rest!"
Lei immediately teleported to the border of Shanluo City, where he had been before, and then moved at top speed in the direction of Nanyu.
He hadn't been to the place Han Ji talked about, but after getting the details from him, he understood how to reach it.
An hour later.
Lei finally reached his destination. He noticed many Warriors hiding in the shadows. He ignored them and directly entered the compound. He knew they were likely Jin Bo's men.
But the inside was a shocking scene.
He found that there were dead bodies scattered all around.
Lei frowned inwardly as he continued moving toward a certain room where he sensed someone's presence.
He found someone sitting on a chair in an extremely injured state.
Lei looked at him with complex emotions as he questioned, "Do you not have anything to heal yourself?"
Lei was puzzled. Why was everyone around him dead? Li Gang shouldn't have had the battle strength to kill them in his current state.
He could tell that those injuries weren't recent, but had been on him for a long time. And if he had killed everyone who captured him, why had he still not healed himself?
Li Gang's gaze was confident and calm. He said lightly, "It took you a while!"
Lei didn't reply. He continued staring at Li Gang.
They both knew what the other wanted. They both knew what question they were going to ask each other.
At the same time, Jinyang City.
King Jin Long had Shang Chi personally escort Lei Zhenyu all the way from the salty coastal winds of Dongfang Port to Jinyang, the royal capital. Lei Zhenyu was not in shackles, but he wasn't free either. He was confined to a luxurious, heavily warded pavilion within the palace grounds, watched day and night by the Golden Crow's elite guards.
Jin Long needed him kept close and alive. Lei Zhenyu was the ultimate leverage—the only key they had to control Lei, who was currently occupying Shi Tian's body.
Inside the quiet pavilion, the air was thick with burning incense. Jin Long sat across a low wooden table from his captive, pouring a cup of tea with deliberate, unhurried precision. He set the teapot down, looked at Lei Zhenyu, and asked lightly, "How did you manage to appear in the Northern Continent?"
Lei Zhenyu stared at the steam rising from his cup for a moment before speaking.
"During the massacre at Jade Harbor City, the Demon King of the South spared me," Lei Zhenyu replied, his voice rough but steady. "I didn't know why at the time. But before I could escape the aftermath of that slaughter, he appeared in front of me again. He was brutally injured—bleeding out and barely holding together. Even in that state, I knew I wasn't a match for him. My only goal was to survive so I could eventually take my revenge."
Lei Zhenyu let out a dry breath. "I was relieved that he didn't plan to kill me, but what he told me next changed everything. He said he had an enemy named Lin Fan, an incredibly dangerous man who had followed him all the way there and was hiding in the shadows, watching his every move. The Demon King told me he had a use for me, and that if I wanted to live, I had to persuade Lin Fan."
"I trusted him, because he did spare me. I subconsciously believed he didn't wish me to die for some reason."
Jin Long's eyes narrowed slightly, silently urging him to continue.
"He gave me a letter, written in a language I didn't understand," Lei Zhenyu explained. "He told me to announce to Lin Fan that he held critical information regarding Wang Xueyao and her ultimate goals. The Demon King had confronted her and even lived alongside her for five years."
A bitter, humorless smile crossed Lei Zhenyu's face. "It was the perfect bait. As instructed, I told Lin Fan the information came with a price. If he ever wanted to know Wang Xueyao's secrets, he had to become our shield. I demanded that he protect me, Huang Haoran, and Huang Rong without alerting them. And more than that—he had to personally ensure that Huang Haoran and I safely reach the Northern Continent before a very specific deadline: 15th February of the year 42058."
"I had to accept his offer, because he said if I was found by an Emperor, I would die. If I wished to meet my parents, who had escaped their predicament, I had to come to the Northern Continent by that time. He told me that my father would appear here around this time!"
Lei Zhenyu looked up, meeting the King's gaze. "Lin Fan wanted to soul search, but after reading the letter, he suddenly agreed to my terms. To get what he was after, he had to keep us alive and escort us exactly where the Demon King wanted us to be."
I know that my readers are smart and should have guessed what happened. I will elaborate nonetheless.
A few days ago, Prince Jin Bo found Li Gang's location. In fact, he had found many such suspicious locations, but refrained from interfering due to Jin Long's and Lei's orders.
Jin Bo's and Lei's subordinates never searched in the same place, in order to find Li Gang's location quickly. Jin Long wanted to ensure that he found Li Gang before Lei did, and thus he had asked Jin Bo to send his Warriors to all the remote regions.
Using his influence, Jin Long concluded much earlier than Lei that Li Gang wasn't present in any major provinces. He asked Jin Bo to ensure that Lei's subordinates only searched those major regions.
In this way, Jin Long found Li Gang before Lei did, and helped him kill all of Huang's Warriors.
Li Gang also involved Jin Long in his plan now. It was for this reason that Jin Long got his hands on Lei Zhenyu!
It should be noted that Li Gang was confident Jin Long wouldn't betray him. Shi Tian was someone Jin Long trusted. He had even shared the news of his submission to Li Gang with Shi Tian. Jin Long would surely try to protect Shi Tian.
As a result, Jin Long could not allow Lei Zhenyu to meet Lei freely. Thus, there was no chance of betrayal as long as Lei Zhenyu was under Jin Long's protection!
Returning to Li Gang's conversation with Lei.
Li Gang confirmed the Body Parasitizing rules. After realizing that the rules in his memory were the same as the ones Lei stated, Li Gang felt slightly relieved.
If Lei had stated that the day Huang takes over Li Gang's body was after the one Li Gang knew from his memory, then Li Gang would be sure that Lei was lying. That would mean Lei intended to collaborate with Huang; after Huang took over the body, he would find out where Lei Zhenyu was and protect him in a timely manner.
If Lei had stated it was before the date Li Gang knew about, then it would confirm that the person who gave him the extra memories was his enemy. That memory would have been intended to trap him by delaying his plans.
If the dates they spoke of were the same, then it could be both a worst-case and best-case situation for Li Gang. Now, Lei could be trusted—as long as the person behind Lei wasn't the same person who granted Li Gang the memories! Humans are complex creatures. This test only proved whether Lei was trustworthy at this very moment. Lei could definitely change his mind later on.
At the same time, neither of them could be fully trusted. Li Gang knew that the information he had about parasitizing a body came from an Emperor. He also knew that behind Lei's and Huang's schemes, there was an Emperor. What if they were the same entity? In that case, Lei could be lying to him right now, deliberately giving him the exact same rules Li Gang had received from Lin Fan's memories. This was a flaw that Li Gang had no way to resolve.
The only way to target Huang and get rid of him was on the very day he took over the body. That was the only day Huang would come out and regain consciousness. There was a gap of one day before he fully eradicated Li Gang's soul and gained all his memories.
Li Gang needed to know what day that was to make everything work.
Li Gang disclosed to Lei how many days Huang had already taken over his body, exactly on which days, and for what durations.
Lei narrowed his eyes, suspicious of the sudden transparency. "Why are you giving me your exact weaknesses?"
Li Gang stated bluntly, "If you are lying to me, holding back information, or waiting for the perfect moment to double-cross me, you need to know exactly how much time you actually have. This isn't a game. If you miscalculate and let Huang take permanent control, I die. I am giving you the timetable so you understand that my deadline is your son's deadline. If I don't get my body back within 12 hours on that day, you'll have no chance of saving your son!"
Lei's fists trembled at his sides, the mention of his son twisting the knife of his hatred. "You dare speak of my son after what you did to my family? Don't worry, I will save you, and then kill you!"
Li Gang said calmly, "I did not orchestrate it, nor did I desire it."
Lei glared at Li Gang deeply. He wouldn't believe a single word!
Li Gang continued, "Based on everything I have pieced together since, it was the work of an Emperor. He pulled the strings from behind the scenes. It has to be related to Wang Xueyao."
Lei's eyes narrowed. He had done some research on Li Gang, and knew that he had a mysterious fiancée named Wang Xueyao. "Wasn't it your treasure that allowed you to kill them?"
"It was my treasure," Li Gang admitted freely, not breaking eye contact. "And it does grant a terrifying boost to my battle strength. But there is a fatal condition to using it that proves my innocence in the planning of that massacre."
Li Gang tapped his own temple. "The treasure only activates when my brain completely shuts down. I have to be entirely unconscious, acting purely on hollow, mindless instinct for it to work. A mindless beast does not plan a targeted, calculated extermination of a bloodline. I had absolutely nothing to gain from wiping out your family. It was a setup, and we were both used."
Lei narrowed his eyes, understanding what Li Gang was trying to imply.
At the same time, he thought inwardly, 'Where could he possibly hide Lei Zhenyu?'
Lei immediately thought of an answer. Zudas.