After a brief moment of thought, Wu Suowei quickly finalized a two-pronged plan.
“How about this? Ou Li, Mi Ke, and I will head out together, while Zheng Gang's safety will be in your hands, Junior Brother.”
Fearing that Wu Daoqing might feel underappreciated or harbor some resentment, he took the time to patiently and thoroughly explain his reasoning. It was also a sign of respect toward the Ghost Immortal.
Although Lady Ming had stated she was only responsible for protecting Wu Daoqing...
...once they actually faced the mastermind, Wu Suowei would make sure Wu Daoqing was drawn into the fray. When that happened, there was no way the Ghost Immortal could just stand idly by.
Raising her favorability now with a respectful attitude was the only way to ensure he wouldn't be instantly pulverized when she eventually realized he had engineered her involvement in the battle.
“Junior Brother, to make sure there are no misunderstandings between us, I think I should make this clear: I'm absolutely not looking down on you or neglecting you with this arrangement.”
“My reasoning is twofold. First, Lady Ming's immortal light is too radiant, and her presence is too overbearing. She would completely suppress any spiritual entities in the area.”
“With her around, those spirits probably wouldn't dare show their faces. If they don't come out, Mi Ke won't have a target for her channeling, and we won't be able to get any clues.”
“Second, the symbol Zheng Gang needs to investigate is directly related to the mastermind, but he's just an ordinary historian. If he ends up touching something he shouldn't during his search, we'll have to trouble you, Junior Brother.”
“My own Daoist arts are just a messy, self-taught hodgepodge. I can hold my own in a fight, but I'm useless at anything else. You, on the other hand, come from an orthodox lineage and are highly knowledgeable. If there's any danger, you'll be able to spot it early.”
It was a beautifully crafted speech, balancing the bigger picture with genuine praise.
Even Bai Ci couldn't find a single flaw in it, and she certainly couldn't have put it any better herself.
It was just that Wu Daoqing, the naive boy, was bound to be utterly bamboozled by a seasoned slickster like Wu Suowei once again.
As it turned out, Bai Ci's prediction was spot on. The sheltered Wu Daoqing was completely won over. Believing that Wu Suowei was both thorough and humble, he immediately nodded in solemn agreement.
“Don't worry, Senior Brother. I understand. I will protect Mr. Zheng the entire time and make sure no harm comes to him.”
With their roles decided, they didn't waste any more time. It was better to act sooner rather than later, so they split up immediately.
Zheng Gang quickly packed up his notebook and fountain pen, heading straight for the city's largest municipal library downtown.
It held the most comprehensive collection of books, including Republican Era gazetteers, local miscellaneous records, and other aged reference materials.
After all, the books in the Zhao estate weren't going anywhere; he could look at them whenever he wanted. The municipal library, however, closed at eight in the evening.
Wu Daoqing followed closely by his side. Because of Wu Suowei's solemn entrustment, he was in a highly tense state of alert.
Upon arriving at the library, Zheng Gang first began flipping through the thick card catalog to search for references.
After jotting down a long list of titles, he looked up at the wall.
Hanging on that wall was a clock and a simple layout map of the library's interior.
After looking at it for just a few seconds, Zheng Gang seemed to have memorized it completely, heading straight for the ancient texts section.
His movements were fluid, without a single moment of hesitation or doubt about the directions. He just walked right there.
Zheng Gang's actions certainly did justice to his muscles. Faced with a stack of various albums and books that reached up to his chest, he steadily hoisted the entire pile with a single hand.
His sleeve tightened against his flexing arm, offering a glimpse of the firm, defined muscle lines beneath. It was a display of pure strength, showing not a single trace of weakness.
On the other hand, Wu Daoqing had only taken a stack about a quarter of the height of Zheng Gang's.
Yet after carrying it for only a few minutes, his arms were already growing sore. He had to constantly shift the books from one arm to the other, his face betraying his physical strain.
Deep within his consciousness, Ming Yi let out a cold click of his tongue, delivering an undisguised, disdainful evaluation. This time, it wasn't a broadcast; his voice was transmitted directly into Wu Daoqing's ears alone.
“A weak constitution and frail bones. Spending years in secluded cultivation without physical training has left you weaker than a scholar who sits at a desk all day. Laughable.”
Suddenly hearing the Ghost Immortal's criticism, Wu Daoqing's cheeks instantly flushed red with shame. Gritting his teeth, he steadied his arms, not daring to slack off even a little.
Bai Ci naturally knew why, and she could actually sympathize. Players had the benefit of stat-allocation, whereas poor Wu Daoqing could only rely on his own hard training.
Seeing the two sit down and start flipping through the books, Bai Ci had no desire to just sit around and daze out.
Taking advantage of her current spiritual state, she had no fixed goal, so she drifted aimlessly through the vast ancient texts section of the library, looking around and touching things here and there.
She floated slowly past row after row of bookshelves, her gaze scanning the titles written on the spines of each book.
The library was quiet and solemn, filled only with the soft rustle of turning pages and occasional footsteps. Sunlight streamed through the French windows, spilling onto the floor in a picture of peaceful serenity.
But when Bai Ci drifted toward the most secluded reading area in the corner, she suddenly paused.
The corner was dimly lit, cast in shadow, and rarely visited by readers.
A middle-aged man in ordinary casual clothes was crouching down with his back to the reading area, holding a phone to his ear and speaking in a low voice.
An ordinary person wouldn't have noticed someone crouching in this corner at all. At first, Bai Ci also assumed he was just an unsociable, ordinary guy, or perhaps someone who couldn't find any other place to take a call and had resorted to this corner.
It wasn't until she turned to leave that she suddenly caught what the man was saying to the person on the other end of the line.
“Uncle Yun, don't worry about my work. Keep your mind at ease. I've been tailing them the whole time, and I haven't let my guard down for a second.”
“Yeah, yeah... That young kid from the Heavenly Master Association and that scholar from out of town are both in the municipal library.”
The man's tone carried a hint of a sneer and confusion, dripping with deep contempt.
“I really don't get what's wrong with their heads, running over here to flip through a bunch of useless old books. What could they possibly find? I think they're just wasting their time.”
This conversation was packed with information, instantly halting Bai Ci's aimless wandering.
This man was tailing them.
There was no doubt about it.
Bai Ci instinctively took a closer look at the man, wanting to examine his aura and figure out where he came from.
But the moment she looked and saw his shifty, rat-like face, Ming Yi, who had been completely silent deep within her consciousness, suddenly erupted.
Even as a spirit body, Bai Ci could feel a wave of bone-chilling cold rising from within her. This was highly unusual.
Before Bai Ci could even ask, she was pushed offline by Ming Yi in the next split second. He was taking control of the body himself.
Ming Yi reached out, making a gesture as if strangling someone's neck from a distance.
Instantly, several red silk ribbons waiting in the void unfurled with a roar, lunging forward like venomous snakes emerging from their den, wrapping around the man's neck in a direct stranglehold.
Rate on N.U.
