Family Arrives

Yang Wenqing waited until nightfall, but the forensic examiner still provided no further clues. Perhaps he had been too much of an eyesore; before long, Ding Lang kicked him out.

Before getting off work, he went to Deputy Director Gao's office and reported the case's progress to him in person once more. Deputy Director Gao appeared to listen to the case report attentively, yet he did not ask about any details. He merely told Yang Wenqing with a genial smile, "Don't rush. Be patient." He even told him to go back and get a good night's rest—perhaps there would be new clues tomorrow.

Yang Wenqing returned to the office, picked up the case file Liu Qin had written, and read through it carefully. He realized that there truly was no use in being anxious now. All he could do was wait slowly for the results from the forensic examiner and the Port Security Office.

Wu Yan handed over a document he had compiled himself and said, "This is a case the Second Squad handled in previous years. It was also related to a Life-Draining Formation. They compiled a list of every wealthy household in the county nearing the end of their lifespan, along with some registered Qi Refinement Practitioners. I narrowed it down to six people who may be connected to the port case. Once the victim's identity is confirmed, if he is connected to one of these six, that person will be the prime suspect."

Yang Wenqing gave Wu Yan an approving glance, then picked up the case file and began reading. It was actually an unsolved case. The victim had been hung from a banyan tree outside the city, and traces of a Life-Draining Formation had been found around it. One look was enough to tell that it used the wood element to steal lifespan.

After memorizing the six people Wu Yan had marked, Yang Wenqing carefully flipped through the remaining wealthy households and Qi Refinement Practitioners whose lives were nearing their end. Then he raised his head, looked out the window, and found that night had already fallen.

"Xiao Qin, you head back first."

Yang Wenqing glanced at Liu Qin and said it, then looked at Wu Yan. "Old Wu, you can head back too."

Liu Qin was somewhat embarrassed. Only after Wu Yan left did she pick up a small bag and walk out of the office. Since the squad had no night shift duty, nighttime communications were handled centrally by the Police Alert Center. If anything happened, the Police Alert Center would notify Yang Wenqing immediately, while the other team members could only be notified by Yang Wenqing.

Another half hour passed before Yang Wenqing rose and left the office. On his way out, he went to take another look at the forensic room. Ding Lang had already left, while two junior forensic examiners were calculating something around a formation.

He could only back out of the forensic room.

By the time Yang Wenqing left the sub-bureau's gates, the night was deep. Runic streetlights on both sides of the road cast dim yet steady light. Out of habit, he walked back to Dongning Community. The evening breeze carried the chill of early spring against his face, clearing his mind slightly as he sorted through the case.

As he neared the community entrance, he spotted a familiar figure from afar. The man was squatting by the curb, using the streetlight's glow to gnaw on a hard, dry rice cake with his head lowered. He wore an old cotton-padded jacket washed to a faded white, his body somewhat stooped, with two bulging burlap sacks resting at his feet.

It was his father, Yang Jianmu.

Yang Wenqing halted, a complicated tide of emotions rising within him—surprise, bitterness, and a trace of warmth. Then he quickened his pace and walked over.

"Dad!" Yang Wenqing called out.

Yang Jianmu raised his head at the sound. The moment he saw his son, a somewhat awkward smile appeared on his face. He hurriedly stood up, patted the dust off his trousers, and tucked the half-eaten rice cake into his pocket.

"Wen Qing, off work?"

"Yeah. You could've gone to the sub-bureau to find me." Yang Wenqing glanced at the sacks by his father's feet, then at the expressionless armed guards at the community entrance. He understood. His father had no identification, so naturally he could not enter the strictly managed Dongning Community.

"It's fine. I figured you'd be getting off soon, so I waited here for a while." Yang Jianmu rubbed his hands together, a slightly proud smile on his face. "You're a Qi Refinement Practitioner now. The place you live must be something special. I didn't dare barge in."

Yang Wenqing said nothing more. He bent down and lifted the two heavy burlap sacks. "Come on. Let's go home."

At the community entrance, he showed his badge. After the guard on duty verified his identity, he saluted and let them through. Yang Jianmu followed closely behind his son, curiously yet somewhat cautiously surveying the neat surroundings and the buildings that faintly radiated spiritual fluctuations.

Back in Room 305 of Building Three, Yang Wenqing opened the door, carried the sacks into the kitchen, and took a look inside. They contained ground rice flour and fresh vegetables.

"Dad, sit." Yang Wenqing turned to look at his father, who had followed him in, and motioned for him to sit in the rattan chair in the living room. He switched on the lights.

Yang Jianmu's gaze was immediately drawn to the Foundation-Stabilizing Formation in the center of the living room. He then looked up at the bright lights, before seeming to recall something and rising to his feet. "You haven't eaten yet, right? I'll make you something."

"I'll do it. Sit and rest." Yang Wenqing stopped his father, then said with a smile, "I'm already a Qi Refinement Practitioner. In theory, I can go without food."

Yang Jianmu immediately said, "The clan elders said that Qi Refinement Practitioners still have to eat. Otherwise, it just isn't proper. I specially picked some spiritual vegetables for this trip."

Yang Wenqing smiled but did not reply. He then entered the kitchen to wash the rice and vegetables.

Several times, Yang Jianmu wanted to get up and go into the kitchen to chat with his son for a few words. Yet each time, after taking two steps, he retreated. Ever since Yang Wenqing had entered the Security Academy at sixteen, father and son had spent little time together. Whenever Yang Jianmu came to the city to deliver rice and flour, he would merely give a few instructions before hurrying away.

The meal was soon ready: a simple basin of vegetable soup, pickled vegetables brought by his father, and steaming white rice.

The two sat at the small dining table and ate in silence. From time to time, Yang Jianmu secretly glanced at his son. He wanted to ask whether work was going well and whether cultivation was tiring, but each time the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back down. He simply kept putting food into his son's bowl.

After dinner, Yang Wenqing cleared the dishes while Yang Jianmu insisted on helping wash them. The two grown men crowded beside the tiny kitchen sink, the sound of running water splashing away. There was still little conversation, yet a silent warmth flowed quietly between them.

This was how father and son got along. Neither was good at expressing himself; all their concern and longing were hidden within this quiet companionship and these simple actions.

After eating, Yang Wenqing took the initiative to talk about home, asking after his younger brother, younger sister, and mother. Yang Jianmu explained everything, down to the smallest detail.

Time slipped away unnoticed. By the time the clock on the wall reached eleven thirty, the fatigue on his father's face had become apparent. Yang Wenqing arranged for him to rest in the master bedroom, while he went to the desk in the living room, intending to inscribe some spell talismans. He could now inscribe twenty talismans a day.

But that money was merely a drop in the ocean compared with the cost of Qi Refining formations. Besides, he planned to improve his family's life as soon as possible.

Yet just as Yang Wenqing had finished inscribing one talisman, his old father emerged from the bedroom, his face flushed as he told Yang Wenqing that he needed the toilet. Yang Wenqing immediately stopped what he was doing, led his father to the bathroom, and taught him how to use the various ingenious formations inside.

The night passed without incident.

Yang Wenqing's internal clock woke him at four thirty. Not long afterward, his father also emerged from the master bedroom.

"I need to catch the early bus back." Yang Jianmu had already packed up his things. After saying that, he went to the toilet first.

Yang Wenqing did not try to persuade him. First, he did not like persuading people. Second, he knew his old father was stubborn, and no amount of persuasion would work. He could only follow him out and see him off at the public transit stop. There were floating buses there, and the five-thirty morning bus would pass through Three Rivers Town.

Yang Wenqing had wanted to take his father to breakfast, but his father refused on the grounds that "if I eat too much, there's nowhere to use the toilet."

As he slowly walked back to the community after seeing his father off, the sky was still dark. He did not return home, instead practicing boxing at the community training ground.

Only when facing his father did Yang Wenqing understand why there were so many talented people in the City Defense Bureau, yet so few who were truly dazzling. Most of them were trapped by the trivialities of reality. Even Yang Wenqing was no exception. He needed to crack the Wooden Chest Corpse Case, even though it would do nothing to improve his cultivation.

Such things might follow him for a long time, until the day he could make the rules of the game himself. And that would be a rugged road. Even the bigshots of the City Defense General Bureau acted beneath those rules.

"Have enough patience!"

He suddenly remembered Deputy Director Gao's advice from their two conversations. He shook his head and buried those thoughts deep within his consciousness.

After a while, he saw an acquaintance enter his field of vision. It was Xiao Liang, his captain from the Public Security Office.

"I heard you ran into a case involving an evil cultivator yesterday?" Xiao Liang asked.

"Yeah." Yang Wenqing was not surprised that Xiao Liang knew about the case.

"I heard it from someone in the same intake at the Port Security Office. When I heard you'd taken the case, I specifically asked a few more questions." Xiao Liang said softly, "Cases like this are troublesome. Sometimes, even if you catch the murderer and every clue points to him, you still can't find valid evidence—unless you have enough influence to apply to use the Soul-Searching Technique on the suspect."

After saying that, he took up a starting stance and continued, "The best cases for the Major Crimes Unit are those with a clear murderer, where you only need to hunt down the culprit to close the case. They're also easy ways to earn merit."

Yang Wenqing caught some of the implications and asked quietly, "You mean...?"

"Don't let your thoughts run wild!" Xiao Liang cut him off. "Even if you don't handle it well, it won't matter. Your superiors probably won't make things difficult for you."

Yang Wenqing nodded silently. He understood the meaning beneath Xiao Liang's words, and he also understood that Xiao Liang had said all he was willing to say.

Sure enough, after Xiao Liang finished a set of punches, he went home. Yang Wenqing cast a Dust-Cleansing Technique on himself, then left the community and headed toward the sub-bureau.