Profiling

Night slowly descended.

Feng City sank back into darkness.

In the living room of the residential house, Jiang Ran slowly opened his eyes, sat up, and stretched comfortably.

This sleep had been exceptionally solid.

The weakness brought on by Buddha's Wrathful Vajra had completely dissipated. The blood and qi within him surged full and vigorous, even a few degrees stronger than at his peak.

Jiang Ran stood and walked to the window, lifting a corner of the curtain to check the surroundings.

The old residential district remained silent, only the occasional sound of wind from afar, with no signs of monster activity.

After confirming it was safe.

Jiang Ran sat back on the sofa and pulled out his phone from his pocket.

As usual, he first logged into the forum to gauge the shift in online sentiment.

Almost every time he entered the Return to Void, the information landscape underwent drastic changes.

Sure enough, as soon as he refreshed the homepage, the title of the first post caught his attention.

[The strongest Transcendent so far!? Full process of soloing an Ancient Exotic Beast in the business district (with video)]

Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow slightly and clicked in with interest.

He was genuinely curious to see what stage other Transcendents had developed to.

But the moment he opened the post and saw the video cover screenshot, his expression turned a bit odd.

This street view... looks really familiar.

He played the video, fast-forwarded a few seconds, and quickly confirmed his guess.

It was the entire process of his battle with Zhi in the early morning.

The filming angle remained high in the sky, the lens occasionally shaking from the explosion's shockwaves, but the overall picture was fairly stable.

"A drone shot..."

Jiang Ran mused.

Sure enough, modern times still had plenty of talent—he hadn't noticed anything in the sky at all.

But as for being filmed, Jiang Ran didn't feel particularly bothered.

Modern surveillance and recording technology was everywhere. Unless he had some precognitive ability like Observation Haki, there was no way to completely avoid it.

Since he couldn't dodge it, it didn't matter.

After all, he was wearing a mask, and his hoodie was pulled low. His real-world identity wouldn't be exposed for now.

Jiang Ran skipped the video and scrolled straight down to the comments section.

The comments had exploded—over twenty thousand replies, still increasing by several per second.

Most comments were shock and adoration. Jiang Ran could understand.

Before this, most people's understanding of the Transcendent in the Return to Void had been limited to textual descriptions in other posts.

This video not only filled the imaginative gap of what Transcendent combat looked like but also raised the ceiling of that understanding by a large margin.

But compared to ordinary people's reactions.

What stood out more was the silence of other Transcendents.

After all, they could most intuitively feel the enormous gap between the power displayed by the black-clad man in the video and the abilities they themselves had obtained.

Closing the forum, Jiang Ran checked the time.

Nine-seventeen PM.

A little over two hours until the return.

He needed to hurry.

Jiang Ran pulled the Bagua Copper Coin from his pocket and weighed it in his palm.

After entering the Return to Void today, he had gone straight to his plan of hunting Zhi, without using his daily divination opportunity.

Naturally, he couldn't waste it.

As for what to divine with this toss, Jiang Ran had already decided.

Excluding things like the Seed of Return to Void that could only be encountered by chance, the remaining choices were Special Items, weapons and equipment, or cultivation techniques.

Among these, what Jiang Ran most urgently needed was the subsequent chapters of the Blood-Qi Circulation Method.

The Blood-Flow Chapter and the Blood-Nourishing Chapter.

He didn't know how long it would take to fully master the Blood-Sensing Chapter.

But when it came to foundational matters, the earlier he prepared, the better.

So Jiang Ran silently recited his question in his mind, then raised his hand and tossed the Bagua Copper Coin upward.

The coin spun rapidly in the air, emitting a faint hum.

A few seconds later, a clear sense of direction settled in Jiang Ran's mind.

North, about thirty kilometers.

Inside the safe zone?

Jiang Ran's brow furrowed slightly.

This was a bit troublesome.

The safe zone currently held a large number of survivors, which meant... the clue to the Blood-Flow Chapter might not necessarily be on a monster.

Just as he was pondering this, the phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.

Jiang Ran pulled out his phone. The screen lit up, showing a new message.

It was from Wang Zhenguo.

"Boss, all the bodies have been dealt with. We got seventeen Spirit Crystals in exchange. I've also gathered some intel on supernatural cultivation. For now, it's confirmed there are two main paths, but the specifics are kept very secret—I'm still digging. Within Feng City Safe Zone, there are currently five major powers: the Federation officials, Voyage Group, Li Group... Li Group's influence isn't limited to Feng City; they're said to have a presence in major cities worldwide. Also, because of the video online, a lot of people are asking about you."

Jiang Ran looked at the message, thought for a moment, and replied: "Wait for me at the same place as last time."

He still planned to head to the safe zone.

Besides searching for clues about the Blood-Flow Chapter, the Heavenly Net Pouch was almost full again.

He could hand another batch over to Wang Zhenguo for processing.

He had to admit, Wang Zhenguo's efficiency exceeded Jiang Ran's expectations.

When they last met, the man was just an ordinary person trapped on a hotel rooftop, waiting to die.

In less than a day, he was already able to handle large batches of monster corpses steadily.

Whether it was adaptability or resourcefulness, he was on point.

Wang Zhenguo quickly replied with a confirmation.

Jiang Ran put away his phone, stood up, and sorted his gear.

He changed into a hoodie from the homeowner's place here.

Then he put on a mask, a tactical waist pouch, and a few Blue Spirit Crystals close to his body.

After confirming everything was in order, he pushed open the door, his figure melting into the night as he headed toward the safe zone.

An hour later.

Outside the warehouse from their last meeting, Wang Zhenguo was already waiting at the entrance.

Seeing Jiang Ran emerge from the shadows of the street, he immediately stepped forward and greeted respectfully, "Boss."

Jiang Ran's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly at the address.

Even though they had signed the Blood Oath, having a middle-aged man over a decade older call him "boss" gave him a vague gangster vibe.

He thought for a moment, then said calmly, "Change the title."

"You'll be handling resource trades and intelligence gathering sooner or later, so you'll need to establish an organization." Jiang Ran spoke as he walked.

Wang Zhenguo looked thoughtful, then after a few seconds, tested, "Chairman?"

Jiang Ran nodded, said nothing more, and walked straight to the warehouse, reaching up to lift the rolling door.

Once Wang Zhenguo followed him inside, Jiang Ran lowered the door again, blocking out the outside world.

He turned around, not bothering to hide anything, and focused his mind.

Hum...

The mouth of the Heavenly Net Pouch opened.

The next moment, over a hundred Cat Monster corpses began to appear out of thin air in the open space ahead, slowly piling up.

Wang Zhenguo stood to the side, watching the scene quietly, his expression calm.

When he saw that video online, he already knew the black-clad man in it was the person before him.

As for this method of storing and retrieving bodies out of thin air...

Wang Zhenguo wisely didn't ask.

As a subordinate, he would know what he needed to know when the time came.

What he shouldn't know, asking would only cause trouble.

Besides, Jiang Ran trusted him completely.

After receiving the message that the bodies had been dealt with, he hadn't even asked who they were sold to or what the transaction details were.

That kind of trust made Wang Zhenguo feel even more at ease.

Soon, over a hundred corpses were all removed, piled into a small mountain inside the warehouse.

Jiang Ran turned to look at Wang Zhenguo. "Keep these spirit crystals from this batch, and the last one too, for your own use. Whether it's recruiting people or buying intel, it's all fine."

He paused, then added, "If you ever get a chance to become a Transcendent, go for it. If it's not enough, I have more here."

Wang Zhenguo was taken aback, opening his mouth as if to say something.

But Jiang Ran had already raised a hand to cut him off. "Let's go. I want to take a look around the safe zone."

With that, he led the way to the warehouse door and pulled the rolling shutter back up.

Wang Zhenguo watched Jiang Ran's retreating back, his lips twitching, but in the end, he swallowed every word.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the surging emotions within, and quickly followed.

Jiang Ran had thought this arrangement through.

Gray Spirit Crystals were no longer of much help to his cultivation.

More importantly, if Wang Zhenguo was going to handle resources and manage an intelligence network for him long-term, he needed to have some strength and influence of his own.

An ordinary person could hardly stand firm in the Abyssal Void, a place where power reigned supreme.

So it was better to hand over the early batches of resources to Wang Zhenguo and let him grow as fast as possible.

The two walked one after the other and soon entered the safe zone.

The streets along the way showed clear signs of life.

Though still desolate, at least there were faint flickers of firelight and the occasional murmur of voices.

Wang Zhenguo kept pace half a step behind Jiang Ran and spoke in a low voice. "Right now, there are about thirteen hundred registered survivors in the Feng City Safe Zone, but actually, more than half of them aren't inside the zone."

"But the number's been growing fast, and it's only getting faster."

Jiang Ran nodded. This was within his expectations.

As news of the Abyssal Void gradually became public, anyone with resources or connections in the real world would inevitably try every means to gain entry.

Major factions needed to bring in more of their own people, ordinary folks were willing to spend their entire fortunes for a chance, and the Federation needed to replenish its combat strength...

A population explosion was inevitable.

The two walked along the main street for a while.

Jiang Ran adjusted his direction from time to time.

The directional sense from his divination kept pointing north, but as they ventured deeper into the safe zone, the feeling began to grow more specific.

Finally, after crossing two streets, Jiang Ran stopped.

His gaze landed on a man who had just walked out of a convenience store not far ahead.

The man looked to be in his early thirties, wearing a dirty windbreaker and carrying a bulging backpack. He was chatting and laughing with a younger man beside him as they headed out.

Everything seemed normal.

But in Jiang Ran's eyes...

The man's body was covered in a layer of gray-black fur.

The corners of his mouth were unnaturally stretched to his ears, and a long, blood-red tongue extended from his mouth, greedily licking his lips.

Drool dripped down his chin. His eyes were fixed on the companion beside him, filled with naked hunger.

As if, at any moment, he would devour the other alive.

And the passersby, including Wang Zhenguo, showed no reaction at all.

Jiang Ran was already used to this.

Of course, no one else could see it.

Because this was the image his Psychological Profiling had drawn.