Chapter Nineteen: Unexpected Intelligence

Chapter Nineteen: Unexpected Intelligence

Xia Zheng’s mental power wove a net, gradually spreading out, constantly feeding back every movement around him—the voices of people talking, the motion of insects, even the “breathing” of plants—forming a three-dimensional scan of his surroundings. The sensation was uncanny, almost like possessing a god’s-eye view.

“There’s a new game out, let’s go check it out!”—several children rushed toward the game store.

“Alice, look at that man, he’s so handsome.”

“He’s just my type. Should we go ask for his contact info?”—two swooning girls spotted a good-looking man.

“Meow~”

“Wow, what a cute kitten! Let me pet it…”—a little girl, hand held by her mother, stroked a stray cat she’d seen on the street.

“Any news from Clark?”

“Not yet, boss. He said that before that guy died, he couldn’t withstand his torture and spilled some info about a mineral deposit. Seems it’s at the foot of Mount Dolenshik to the north—he’s going to check it out.”

“Good. We’ll head there together later. If the intel checks out, eliminate Clark as well.”

“Boss, do we really have to go that far?”

“Hmph. We must. This time, we’ve crossed the Heavenly Blade Squad, and Chu Yan is no soft-hearted type. We need to erase every trace.”

“Yes, boss. I know what to do. I’ll arrange the men.”

Was this… the culprits behind the attack on the Heavenly Blade Squad’s members? Xia Zheng snapped to attention, focusing all his mental power in that direction.

“Hmm?”

“What’s wrong, boss?”

“Not sure. I keep getting the feeling we’re being watched, but I can’t find anything. Let’s get out of here—meet outside the city.”

Xia Zheng immediately toned down his probing, but still locked onto the two speakers, who were moving farther and farther away. If he didn’t pursue now, he’d lose them.

“Since I’ve run into this, I can’t let it slip away.” After weighing his options, Xia Zheng decided to follow. After all, there was no real rush for the next two rounds of exams.

Using his mental power to his advantage, Xia Zheng tailed the two men, unaware that someone else was quietly shadowing him from behind.

“What’s this kid up to?” the person muttered in surprise.

Dannute City was fairly large. Xia Zheng followed the two men for quite some time before they finally left the city limits, driving a modified military vehicle northward into the suburbs.

Beyond the city, the Dannute region became much sparser, with abandoned open-pit mines dotting the landscape. To keep up with the vehicle, Xia Zheng propelled himself with his mental power, matching the car’s speed, trailing them at a steady distance.

Midway, four or five more men joined the group, bringing the total in the car to six or seven.

“How many of these people are powered, and what are their levels?” Xia Zheng wondered. He didn’t dare face them head-on, so he kept his thoughts to himself.

Mount Dolenshik, part of the Dannute range, lay twenty kilometers northwest of the city. The terrain was harsh, and after repeated mining, little of value remained.

“Boss, what if that Heavenly Blade Squad guy lied before he died? Is there really anything valuable in this godforsaken place?”

“Yeah, it’s all been dug out already. What’s left are cheap, worthless minerals.”

“Doesn’t matter. First, we confirm the mineral deposit; second, we tie up loose ends. Our squad can’t match Heavenly Blade’s strength. If we’re caught, we’re all dead.”

Xia Zheng continued to eavesdrop while scanning the surroundings for danger.

Nearly twenty minutes later, they arrived at the foot of Mount Dolenshik.

Six or seven men jumped out of the modified military vehicle, all wearing camouflage and armed to the teeth. Their leader was a tall man with a full beard, sporting transparent glasses that looked like some sort of technological device.

Xia Zheng hid in the grass, observing the group.

“Go get Clark out here,” the bearded man ordered a subordinate.

The man nodded, took out his phone, and contacted Clark.

“Boss, he won’t show—wants us to go directly to the spot,” the subordinate reported.

“Bastard, trying to play games with me? Let’s move.” The leader motioned, and the group disengaged their gun safeties and moved into the woods.

Xia Zheng chose another path, using his mental power to lift himself over obstacles, avoiding any possible lookouts left behind.

The group moved through the woods with practiced coordination, quickly reaching what seemed to be the rendezvous spot.

“Clark, what’s your game? Stop this nonsense and come out—hand over the information,” the leader shouted, lowering his weapon.

“Johnny, cut the crap. You all want to kill me and take the mineral vein for yourselves, right?” a man’s voice answered, but it was impossible to tell which direction it came from.

“Definitely a power user,” Xia Zheng realized at once. The speaker’s ability clearly involved manipulating his voice, making it seem to come from all directions, preventing enemies from pinpointing his location.

Johnny laughed. “Clark, you disappoint me. Haven’t I treated you well these past years? Now you have information on the mineral vein and won’t share? That’s not right by the brotherhood.”

“Exactly, Clark, you jerk! This is our shared wealth—you can’t keep it to yourself.”

“Come out, Clark. The Heavenly Blade Squad is after you for revenge—do you think you’re the only one who can hide?”

“I, Johnny, swear on my mother’s life I won’t harm a brother. If I break this oath, may all punishment fall on her.”

Under the persuasion and coaxing from Johnny and his crew, Clark seemed to waver, sometimes pleading for mercy, sometimes demanding guarantees of his safety.

Finally, a trembling man emerged from beneath their feet—an impressive hiding spot, right under their noses.

“Damn, you really know how to hide,” Johnny said, hauling Clark out and having him tied up.

“Johnny, you lied! You swore on your mother!” Clark struggled and shouted.

Johnny sneered, “My mother abandoned me at birth. I’d be glad for all punishment to fall on her.”

“You—” Clark was too shocked for words.

Soon, his former comrades had him securely bound. Johnny grabbed him by the hair and threatened, “Hand over the information you got from the Heavenly Blade Squad, or maybe I’ll spare you.”

Clark burst out laughing, leaving the others puzzled.

After his laughter died, Clark glared at them and snarled, “I knew you’d never let me go. That’s why I already sold part of the information to someone from the Fallen Wings. He’ll be here soon. Kill me, and none of you will escape.”

“You bastard, threatening me?” Johnny slapped him and stomped on his face.

The others exchanged uneasy glances, clearly wary of this “Fallen Wings” squad.

“Boss, what do we do? Fallen Wings is as strong as Heavenly Blade. Now we’re caught between two big squads.”

“Maybe we should just let it go. Our brotherhood isn’t strong enough to claim this vein…”

“Shut up!” Johnny barked, silencing the group.

Xia Zheng remained motionless, his mental power now cautious and restrained, waiting for developments.

“Xu Yang!” Johnny called. A young man with yellow skin, much like Xia Zheng himself, stepped forward. Johnny gave him instructions, and Xu Yang nodded, producing a vial of red liquid.

“No… no… you bastards, you’ll never get anything from me!” Clark screamed in despair as his captors forced the potion down his throat. Soon, he became like a puppet, reciting everything he’d done over the past few days, down to how many times he’d gone to the bathroom at night.

A nearby man took notes. Soon, they had some intelligence—how to find the entrance to the mineral vein—but not its exact location. No matter how they pressed, nothing more came out; the drug had worn off.

Bang!

Without hesitation, Johnny shot Clark in the head. Xia Zheng’s heart clenched, his body trembling. This was the first time he’d witnessed one person so coldly snuff out another’s life. Johnny’s ruthless decisiveness left a deep impression.

“Boss, the information’s incomplete. What now?” a subordinate asked.

Johnny laughed coldly. “Clark said he sold part of it to the Fallen Wings. We’ll wait here, lay a trap. Once we have the full picture, we’ll find the vein, take some samples, then sell the intel to a top hundred powered squad—or better yet, to a big corporation. We’ll be rich, living the good life.”

“Boss is awesome!”

“Long live Johnny!”

Tempted by the promise of wealth, the men stopped fearing the Fallen Wings. After all, they’d already killed members of the Heavenly Blade Squad—what difference did a few more make? Once the information was sold, they’d disappear—who would ever find them?

Johnny ordered Clark’s body buried on the spot. Using the intelligence extracted before his death, they learned how to contact the Fallen Wings agent, including code words.

Suppressing his pounding heart, Xia Zheng reduced his mental power to a single, thread-thin probe, focusing only on eavesdropping on Johnny’s group while keeping all other senses reined in, ready to withdraw at the first sign of trouble.

He was afraid, but reminded himself that, having chosen the path of a power hunter, he’d eventually have to face such things—this was a valuable experience.

Using his mental power, he gathered leaves and dry grass to camouflage himself, masking his presence, while his psychic tendril hovered, wary, near Johnny’s ambush.

As dusk approached, someone arrived—alone.

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