Dead Sparrow

Soul-Capturing is still more convenient.

Wang Jixuan held a freshly made Soul-Capturing Talisman as he sat inside the now-silent car.

He disliked these demonic cultivation methods.

But in order to quickly learn from Ban Wenying the question he cared about most—what exact role Zhou Zhengde had played in this matter—Daoist Wang used the Soul-Capturing Talisman again.

The old driver in the front seat clutched a handgun, half his head missing, sleeping quietly over the steering wheel.

Ban Wenying sat collapsed there, her eyes full of terror. Her vital signs were stable for now, but the moment Wang Jixuan took away the Soul-Capturing Talisman, her body would rapidly die.

Wang Jixuan glanced at the cabin. The danger there had temporarily passed.

He had taken a shortcut to return quickly—the passage Old Madam Kong had always guarded.

The passage had only one exit in the cabin, but several entrances had been opened within Black Fire Gang territory.

There were access-control gates in the passage that only Old Madam Kong's side could operate, but they were not difficult to deal with. Two talismans could blast them open, and the passage had existed for many years, with much of its equipment already badly deteriorated.

Wang Jixuan smoothly reached the area beneath the cabin and immediately sensed Thomas's presence in the wooden building.

At first, Wang Jixuan had even thought Thomas had come to protect the old woman.

He had considered what he should do if those people used the passage tonight. If Thomas stepped out to stop him when he killed the Black Fire Gang's BOSS, should he deal with the intermediary who had helped him find such a blessed place for cultivation?

Who could have expected...

Daoist Wang's heart was filled with mixed emotions.

Are all mortal officials' hearts this filthy?

This humble Daoist is a little too inexperienced in worldly affairs. Good thing I came to protect Ye Zi and the others. At the very least, those children who haven't been tainted are innocent, and no matter how the Black Fire Gang runs, they can't escape the fortress.

Does this count as a different sort of good being rewarded?

Wang Jixuan had not expected Zhou Zhengde himself to be under the close surveillance of his mother—the Head of Internal Affairs.

As for the woman in the car, Wang Jixuan had only used Soul-Capturing on her after learning her identity.

Ban Wenying, the Head of Internal Affairs' chief secretary.

That made sense. How could the Head of Internal Affairs personally come here to do this sort of dirty work? Sending a subordinate would suffice.

Wang Jixuan expertly activated the Soul-Capturing Talisman and summoned Ban Wenying's soul. After briefly waiting for her to adjust, he did not ask any questions. Instead, he first produced a wisp of true fire with the power of a lighter.

The soul screamed.

Only Wang Jixuan could hear it in his mind.

After burning her for half a minute, Wang Jixuan slowly said:

"I ask, you answer. Your body isn't cold yet. If I decide you can be spared, I'll let you live."

He deliberately emphasized the word if.

Ban Wenying's soul sat limply atop the gently floating talisman paper, nodding frantically.

Wang Jixuan asked, "Do you have any surveillance or listening devices on you?"

Ban Wenying immediately shook her head.

Wang Jixuan could tell she was not lying.

With a sob in her voice, Ban Wenying said, "How could anyone possibly know I came here?"

"Mm." Wang Jixuan asked, "How much does Captain Zhou know about your plan with Thomas?"

"He can probably guess some of it." Ban Wenying's expression was impossible to tell apart, whether she was crying or laughing. "How were you even born? How did you do this? My soul... my soul has been imprisoned by you!"

Wang Jixuan ignored her and continued, "What about Captain Zhou's mother? Is she behind all of this?"

"Yes, I'm her subordinate."

Her soul trembled faintly. She was obviously lying.

Wang Jixuan raised a brow. A thread of Power of Soul became a needlepoint and touched Ban Wenying's soul between the brows.

"Ah! Ah—I'll talk!"

"Don't waste my time. I still need to go back and fight the Black Fire Gang."

Ban Wenying's soul hurriedly nodded.

She rapidly spilled out a string of words, and Wang Jixuan fell into a long silence.

Ban Wenying had been born in Upper City. Benefiting from the glory of her soldier parents, who had died heroically, she became a military clerk. Later, she entered the Internal Affairs Department of Fortress 76, where Zhou Zhengde's mother worked, and had served Zhou Zhengde's mother for seventeen or eighteen years.

She was Zhou Zhengde's mother's confidante, yet she was not content with merely being one. As the Head of Internal Affairs' chief secretary, she moved actively through Upper City and was a famous socialite in those circles.

The deaths of Big Mouth Hua and the gunman Mu Liang had killed in retaliation allowed Ban Wenying to keenly seize upon a political opportunity.

The key event that truly convinced Ban Wenying this was her opportunity was Zhou Zhengde's attack on the forty-sixth floor. It was the only time the Black Fire Gang BOSS, who had lost his "younger brother," had gone mad.

Ban Wenying had been so excited that she nearly jumped up.

Because Ban Wenying knew Zhou Zhengde's backing was so powerful that even the Governor did not dare offend him. His mother would not spare a single enemy who dared hurt her son.

This was the opportunity Ban Wenying had waited a long time for.

She swiftly produced a proposal to "use this incident to replace the Black Fire Gang."

The seven major gangs of Lower City were seven pieces of cake, controlled separately by Upper City's three political factions.

In this area, the military faction represented by the Head of Internal Affairs had always been relatively passive.

The Black Fire Gang in particular was responsible for providing blood products to the frontline War Fortress. It was the most crucial of the seven gang territories, yet it had always been tightly controlled by the 13th Institute faction represented by Fortress 76's Biological Affairs Minister. The military had never been able to get involved.

Ban Wenying knew perfectly well that the Head of Internal Affairs would not reject this proposal, and the backup arrangements she had prepared over many years could finally be put to use.

What slightly surprised Wang Jixuan here was... Thomas had once personally told him that he had a secret girlfriend.

Good heavens, that secret girlfriend was Ban Wenying, who regularly came to the City of Joy on the forty-sixth floor for pleasure!

Thomas would even wear seductive makeup and play all kinds of twisted little games with Ban Wenying.

This...

This was simply...

An insult to civility, a violation of ancient rites, utterly devoid of conscience, and morally depraved!

Could Daoist Wang stand listening to such details?

Though he had heard plenty of them.

Under Ban Wenying's coordination, an encirclement and extermination campaign against the Black Fire Gang rapidly unfolded: gang alliances, the Cleansing Force, factional struggles, and more.

Zhou Zhengde believed he had played an enormous role in it all, but in truth, it had been Sister Ban acting behind the scenes, using the authority granted by the Head of Internal Affairs to pull strings everywhere.

The one uncontrollable variable for Ban Wenying was Wang Jixuan, this "new Psionicist."

Because Zhou Zhengde had always been protecting him from behind the scenes.

Naturally, Ban Wenying had not done this for the military faction's sake.

She wanted to use this opportunity to build her own power base. Having Thomas establish the Cabin Brothers was one part of it, and if she and Thomas could go further and obtain the list in the Black Fire Gang BOSS's hands...

Then she would hold the leverage over a group of retired Upper City officials.

The three major factions—the military, the 13th Institute, and the Governor—would all be at her mercy.

It was extremely dangerous, and Ban Wenying naturally knew that, but she was willing to gamble.

"I can't control my desires," Ban Wenying's soul said, shuddering. "But I never did anything harmful to you or Zhou Zhengde. I've known Zheng De since he was young. I've always taken care of him. Please, let my soul go back!"

Wang Jixuan said gravely, "One last question."

"I can answer all of them! I can get you a great many resources!"

"Tell me, when officials collude with bandits, prey upon the people, and persecute the good, should the officials die, or should the bandits die?"

Ban Wenying's soul shouted, "The bandits should die! The bandits deserve it most! I was only using them!"

Wang Jixuan smiled. "Though this humble Daoist doesn't really wish to concern himself with such filthy matters, I think they should all die."

He raised the shotgun and aimed it at Ban Wenying's head.

Ban Wenying realized what was about to happen and cried out in panic:

"No! Please, don't! I don't want to die! I never offended you! I've been helping you take down the Black Fire Gang! Without me, you two could never have wiped out the Black Fire Gang so smoothly!"

"There's something that must be made clear."

Wang Jixuan casually tossed out the Soul-Capturing Talisman. It swiftly burned to ash, and Ban Wenying's soul burrowed into her forehead.

Before she could adapt to her surroundings or move her body, she heard the helmeted man beside her softly saying:

"I was the one who wanted to take down the Black Fire Gang. It wasn't you people using my and Zhou Zhengde's sense of justice to eliminate the Black Fire Gang.

"That's important, because..."

Bang!

A little blood splattered onto Wang Jixuan's helmet.

Somewhat disgusted, he picked up a handkerchief beside him and wiped it off, then tossed the handkerchief onto Ban Wenying.

"An unsteady Dao heart, with the Inner Demon running rampant."

Wang Jixuan closed the car door, then pulled it open again and said to Ban Wenying's rapidly dissipating remnant soul:

"And one more thing. Little Zhou may be foolishly loyal, but he isn't an idiot. He warned me long ago to get away in time, saying you had been making some small moves."

He slammed the car door shut, carefully surveyed the area, and lowered his head as he hurried back toward the cabin. He looked at the landlady's corpse for a moment.

That list, which Ban Wenying and Thomas considered priceless, did not matter to Daoist Wang at all. He was only wondering where this person's evil had originated—or whether it was simply evil in her nature.

Ye Zi and the others were all on the second floor.

Wang Jixuan could not spare attention for them right now. He only called out, "Ye Zi! Don't be afraid! I'll come get you later!"

Ye Zi gave no response.

Wang Jixuan sighed inwardly.

There was nothing to be done. This was too great a shock for those children. Later, he would ask Zhou Zhengde and Wei Na to help look after the little ones and provide some psychological counseling or something.

Young Master Zhou should be able to handle that easily.

By the way, the gun Wang Jixuan had used to kill Ban Wenying had only Thomas's fingerprints on it. He had already placed the shotgun back in Thomas's arms.

Wang Jixuan entered the hidden room and felt around to press several buttons. The wooden chair and the round platform beneath it descended together.

Wang Jixuan retrieved the Sniper Rifle he had left here earlier. His Sword Finger touched his forehead, divine light gathered in his eyes, and he swiftly changed talismans before advancing through the passage toward Black Fire Gang territory again.

The killing had already begun. Naturally, it could not be stopped casually.

Zhou Zhengde had said he would choose an opportunity to request the fortress deploy the Cleansing Force. They would most likely act soon.

Then before the Cleansing Force moved, he would deal with more Black Fire Gang higher-ups and prevent anyone from surviving through Shedding Skin!

The cabin's second floor.

Directly above the study and the stairwell.

A small face drew close to a crack between the wooden boards, watching the three corpses and quietly meeting Old Madam Kong's wide-open eyes.

A faint ripple appeared in the girl's calm gaze, as though she had just awakened from a dream.

"Mom."

At the same time.

Inside the captain's office of the 13th Floor Security Office.

Zhou Zhengde stared at the gradually appearing photograph in the holographic projection before him, its pixels so poor they were almost unbearable, and his breathing became hurried.

An Qian's corpse lay in the center of the photo.

Faintly visible near An Qian's body was a group of Black Fire Gang thugs scrambling for cover.

The photo had been sent back by the "scout" Zhou Zhengde had dispatched to Lower City. Every faction was closely watching the Black Fire Gang, focused on the clash between "his mysterious Psionicist" and the 13th Institute's Psionicist.

Now, it seemed...

Zhou Zhengde clenched his fist and shouted excitedly, "Beautiful!"

Then he realized An Qian's death could not possibly be concealed from the 13th Institute. The 13th Institute would definitely take action.

Bzz, bzzzz!

The communicator beside him suddenly vibrated.

Zhou Zhengde grabbed the communicator, and messages began frantically popping up across the screen.