At the Origin Company's Federation Capital Branch Office, chief security adviser Xiang Boqing sat in his office, reading a newly delivered publication.
He paid little attention to the text, focusing instead on several photographs printed in it.
In the photographs, Chen Chuan stood holding a long saber, while a headless body knelt before him.
The composition was carefully arranged. Shot from the side, it used the level ground as its baseline, with the kneeling headless body and Chen Chuan's upright figure forming the points and lines of a triangle.
Space had also been deliberately left for the fluttering red scarf. Its flying folds added movement to the scene, giving it a striking sense of tension.
At least the body had no head. The photographer had kept the severed head out of the frame and made no specific mention of a name. Anyone unfamiliar with the victim would not know who it was, salvaging a little dignity for the body's owner.
Only a little.
Among the top Fighters, this was hardly a secret.
Xiang Boqing's gaze flickered. The portion of his body he had dispatched earlier had likewise been destroyed by Chen Chuan.
Few people knew about that incident, but some still did. It had caused no stir, however, because Fan Zhentong had also gone there, and others assumed he had been thwarted by Fan Zhentong.
Yet through his spiritual power, he had clearly sensed that Chen Chuan had utterly defeated it head-on.
Just then, the dedicated telephone on his desk rang.
He glanced at it. The receiver floated up on its own and came to his ear. Mr. Gao's voice emerged, edged with doubt. "Mr. Xiang, is this true?"
Xiang Boqing gave a definite answer. "The International Fighter Council's publications undergo internal verification before release. There can be no mistake."