Fu Qingyang stood motionless, like a statue.
Knowing he couldn't respond, Zhang Yuanqing continued on his own:
"Night Rose is searching for someone called 'Young Soldier King.' Black Impermanence knows this person's identity and background, which is why Pang Wudi inquired with Heaven's Injustice. However, Black Impermanence doesn't know why Night Rose is looking for him."
After a deep breath, Zhang Yuanqing added, "Because this wasn't directly related to the main investigation, I didn't report it earlier. But considering Black Impermanence's interest in the matter, I thought it best to inform you now."
This explanation was a carefully considered compromise. Black Impermanence might not ask about Bing Ge directly, but based on Heaven's Injustice's memories, he was likely to inquire.
If Zhang Yuanqing continued to conceal the truth, not only would the investigation's progress be wasted, but he would also completely lose Fu Qingyang's trust.
Therefore, Zhang Yuanqing chose to reveal only partial information, downplaying the most critical detail: Young Soldier King's involvement in the demon lord's assassination of the Eerie Eye Judge.
He knew Fu Qingyang would likely sense the deception. A Saint Stage Scout couldn't be easily fooled.
But this was a necessary price to pay. Between suspicion and complete loss of trust, he naturally chose the former.
In the bedroom, Heaven's Injustice stiffened slightly, his deep voice responding:
"No reply!"
He scoffed. "The Night Rose is searching for this person, likely with a deeper motive. Why would they tell us anything?"
His voice and subtle expressions were not identical to the real Heaven's Injustice, but they were remarkably consistent, showing no anomalies.
Although Fu Qingyang's understanding of Heaven's Injustice was limited to brief encounters and Zhang Yuanqing's descriptions from his soul inquiry, this information was sufficient for a high-level Scout.
The Blood Mist Face floated above the bowl, its voice faint:
"It doesn't matter. This matter is unimportant. Stay hidden for the next two days and don't go out. Meet me at the usual place at midnight the day after tomorrow."
With that, the blood in the bowl stopped boiling, and the mist dissipated.
In the corridor, Fu Qingyang, who had been as still as a wooden statue, blinked, his eyes regaining their usual sharpness.
He glanced at Zhang Yuanqing beside him, recounted the conversation from the bedroom, and continued:
"Think back. Do you remember any particularly memorable locations associated with Heaven's Injustice? It could be a Black Impermanence stronghold or a place they frequented within Songhai."
Within Songhai... Zhang Yuanqing closed his eyes, pondered for a moment, and slowly replied:
"Apartment 1802, Building 2, 93 Youth City. Lai Fu Hotel. Songhai Third Primary School. Songhe Cafe."
He rattled off seven or eight locations in one breath, explaining:
"Some of these places were where Black Impermanence resided, others were businesses they operated, and still others were places where they once held positions. The common thread is that Black Impermanence and his subordinates used these locations for meetings, serving as temporary strongholds.
"But I don't know if there are more. After all, the Spectral Entity's memories are fragmented."
Fu Qingyang leaned against the railing, gazing at the distant nightscape, his brow furrowed slightly.
Seeing this, Zhang Yuanqing didn't dare speak, fearing that beneath the Fu family Young Master's calm exterior, he was contemplating the ten most brutal methods of interrogating traitors.
Fu Qingyang exhaled and said:
"There are too many strongholds. We lack sufficient manpower."
He didn't need to elaborate; Zhang Yuanqing immediately understood his dilemma.
The manhunt had reached its final stages. All that remained was to ambush the meeting point of Night Rose and Black Guard of Impermanence to capture them all in one fell swoop.
However, there was a mole within the Five Elements Alliance, making it impossible to mobilize a large force for the ambush. This was why Fu Qingyang had been operating with only Zhang Yuanqing for the past two days.
Before the Unbridled Incident, the Five Elements Alliance had conducted a carpet-bombing search for Black Guard of Impermanence, deploying multiple official teams in coordinated operations.
But since learning of Night Rose's existence, Fu Qingyang had changed his strategy. He no longer summoned subordinates, preferring to act alone.
Returning to the matter at hand, the manpower shortage stemmed from two factors: the need for strict secrecy, preventing large-scale mobilization, and the fact that Black Guard of Impermanence and Night Rose's Leader were high-level Spirit Realm Walkers.
Official members below the Saint Stage were considered irrelevant.
"The Songhai Branch has five Elders, each with their trusted aides. We can only ambush five locations, so we must narrow our focus to those five," Fu Qingyang mused.
"If we had detailed information on Black Guard of Impermanence, I could analyze his personality and habits to predict his chosen meeting point."
"I do have it," Zhang Yuanqing replied, frowning in feigned concern. "But Human Blood Steamed Bun hasn't responded yet."
"Centurion, what's our next move?"
Fu Qingyang glanced at him almost imperceptibly. "Let's return for now. I need to research some information."
The next day, Zhang Yuanqing woke up on time and found Little Goofball crawling around the room with his uncle's wallet balanced on its head, like a seal performing a circus trick with a ball.
Give your uncle's wallet a break, kid, Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself. Maybe steal Aunt's underwear occasionally—just don't keep fleecing Uncle.
As he sat up, he reached under his pillow for his phone and checked the inbox of his anonymous number.
One unread message.
Zhang Yuanqing's face lit up. The previous night, after returning home, he had sent a message to Human Blood Steamed Bun, urging him to provide the Black Impermanence data as soon as possible.
Then, filled with anticipation and apprehension, he had drifted off to sleep.
Even though he's an Evil Class member, he's surprisingly efficient, Zhang Yuanqing mused. Well, given the nature of Evil Classes, subordinates who aren't efficient probably get eliminated by their superiors.
He clicked open the message.
The letter was divided into two parts. The first half described Black Impermanence's personality: cautious, gloomy, and tenacious. Paired with the writer's personal observations, this section was brief, seemingly to avoid misleading the reader.
The second half detailed Black Impermanence's past actions, his methods of handling situations, his tactics, and even his fetishes.
Rumor had it that Black Impermanence enjoyed covering women's bodies with various venomous creatures during sexual encounters, believing it doubled his pleasure.
Gradually, even this perverse hobby failed to satisfy him. He began transforming captured women into Gu Beasts, finally finding the long-lost, primal joy of a man in the humanoid female Gu Beasts.
Over time, Black Impermanence lost all interest in normal women. No matter how beautiful a woman was, she couldn't even catch his eye.
So Unbridled's reckless perversions were learned from his boss? Zhang Yuanqing tossed and turned, unable to sleep. After analyzing the letter for hours, he could only deduce one word between the lines: "pervert."
Leave the professional stuff to the professionals. I'll let Fu Qingyang handle this.
He copied the information and forwarded it to Fu Qingyang using Primordial Heavenly Venerable's phone card.
As for the source of the information, he had already decided to attribute it to the Palace of Ceasing Slaughter.
The Palace Master of Ceasing Slaughter and the Primordial Heavenly Venerable had long been connected. The secrets of Xiahou Chi's lineage had been obtained from the Palace Master. Therefore, it was perfectly reasonable for the Primordial Heavenly Venerable to have entrusted something to the Palace Master in private.
As for how the Palace Master obtained this information, that was none of the Primordial Heavenly Venerable's concern.
In his lavishly furnished study, Fu Qingyang set down the documents on his desk and paused for a few seconds before dialing Elder Teddy's number.
Beep... beep...
The call connected, and a cacophony of dog barks erupted from the speaker before abruptly ceasing. Elder Teddy's weathered, steady voice came through:
"Have you found Black Impermanence?"
Fu Qingyang replied calmly, "We've confirmed the time and location of Black Impermanence's meeting with Night Rose for their transaction."
Elder Teddy chuckled. "Excellent progress. If you successfully resolve the Black Impermanence Incident, you'll deserve the lion's share of the credit. That should finally silence those at Headquarters who oppose your membership in the Elders' Council."
After a pause, Elder Teddy added, "Now, let's get down to business."
Fu Qingyang reported his findings from the previous day, his voice grave:
"I've accessed the Branch's files on Black Impermanence, but they're insufficient—not private enough, not detailed enough. A misjudgment could have catastrophic consequences."
A Black Impermanence who possesses the Holy Grail would be an even greater menace.
And if Night Rose gains control of the demon lord's legacy, the situation will become even more precarious.
Elder Teddy fell silent for a long moment before saying, "We can request assistance from Headquarters. Let's hope they can respond in time."
Fu Qingyang frowned. "That's our only option."
His phone vibrated, and a notification popped up: Primordial Heavenly Venerable had sent a message.
Fu Qingyang opened it and his expression froze, a flicker of surprise crossing his face. "Elder, perhaps we won't need to request assistance from Headquarters after all."
"Why not?" Elder Teddy asked.
"I've received a detailed dossier on Black Impermanence," Fu Qingyang replied. "Compared to the information I've seen before, this dossier appears highly credible."
Elder Teddy's tone was incredulous. "Where did you get this information?" If Fu Qingyang had possessed such a dossier earlier, he wouldn't have spoken so cautiously.
"Primordial Heavenly Venerable reported it," Fu Qingyang said calmly. "He's been secretly communicating with the Palace Master of Ceasing Slaughter. He tasked her with monitoring the Gu King Faction's movements long ago."
Elder Teddy paused, then chuckled. "Resourceful and pragmatic—this young man has immense potential. Once the Tiger Tally arrives, if he passes the Grand Inspection, we'll prioritize his cultivation."
Fu Qingyang hummed in agreement. "I'll review the Black Impermanence dossier further and contact you later."
After hanging up, Fu Qingyang focused his attention on the document.
Gradually, Black Impermanence's image grew clearer in his mind:
"He's ruthless and vindictive, as evidenced by his assassination of Primordial. Yet he's also cautious and patient. His willingness to meet with Night Rose isn't solely due to Primordial's 'death' proving his sincerity; there must be deeper reasons behind it.
"However, I have a good idea of the locations he might choose for their meeting."
Late at night, under the soft, goose-down yellow lamplight, Zhang Yuanqing stood with his hands in his pockets, Wang Tai's face hidden beneath a mask.
He strolled leisurely down the deserted street, arriving at the cafe across from the Kangyang District Public Security Bureau.
All the surrounding shops were closed, but this cafe remained brightly lit, its door wide open. The interior was empty, save for a solitary figure in red standing gracefully behind the counter, next to the coffee machine.
She wore an exquisite, vintage Song Dynasty gown, its crimson fabric embroidered with golden cloud and dragon patterns on the sleeves and chest. Her elegant posture and cascading black hair, like a waterfall of silk, hinted at her peerless beauty, even behind a silver mask.
The Palace Master of Ceasing Slaughter held a delicate, ornate teapot, pouring hot water over a filter paper.
"Why not use the coffee machine?" Zhang Yuanqing asked with a smile. "Is hand-drip coffee really better?"
The Palace Master lowered her head, watching the dense, steaming stream of water. Her voice was soft as she replied, "I prefer hand-drip coffee. I like using filter paper."
I also like pour-over coffee, but I don't use paper filters—I use paper towels. Zhang Yuanqing kept his cheeky remarks to himself, afraid to say them to the crazy Palace Master.
"Palace Master, we've pinpointed the time and location of Black Impermanence's deal with Night Rose," Zhang Yuanqing said, standing at the counter, his gaze fixed on the lively, beautiful eyes beneath her mask.
"As a trade, I'll give you the information, but you must help me with two tasks."
"Speak!" the Palace Master of Ceasing Slaughter said suddenly, her voice turning sinister. "I hope they're not too difficult, or I'll consider killing you to Inquire the Soul! I may not be a Nightwalker, but I have the necessary Item."
With that, she twirled a strand of hair between her fingers and giggled coquettishly. "Just kidding! Don't be scared. I wouldn't dream of killing you to Inquire the Soul. You're far too talented—much better suited as my consort."
Zhang Yuanqing said gravely, "First, help me seize the Roster. Second, if Black Impermanence dies in the conflict, you must destroy his Spectral Entity."