Questioning

"...No need."

Chen Ling put away the short blade and took a deep breath. "Let me think about it first."

Chu Muyun slowly leaned back in his chair, seemingly unsurprised by this outcome. He did not try to persuade him to stay, merely speaking calmly.

"No problem. Once you've made up your mind, come find me at Xiaofang Grocery Store anytime... I'll be waiting here all day today."

Chen Ling rose to leave, but Chu Muyun pulled a small silver cube from his pocket and held it out to him.

"What is this?"

"A gift from my superior," Chu Muyun said flatly. "Through it, you may come to understand us a little better..."

Chen Ling accepted the cube, studying it in his palm for a moment before nodding slightly.

"Alright. Thank you."

"One more thing. Watch your mental state. Don't let that twisted God Path influence you... the road you're on is a strange one."

Chen Ling did not answer. He had noticed it too: ever since stepping onto that path, his emotions had become somewhat strange...

He needed to calm down and think things through.

After leaving the room, Chen Ling climbed the stairs all the way up, eventually arriving in a small shop. The woman asleep behind the counter glanced up at him, then went straight back to sleep.

Chen Ling vaguely remembered this Xiaofang Grocery Store. Though it was far from Frost Street, the goods here were cheap. During past New Years, he would occasionally bring Chen Yan here to buy a few things... Who would have thought this place was actually a stronghold for Chu Muyun's organization?

Chen Ling had no intention of chatting with the woman, so he pushed open the door and left.

The heavy snow had not stopped with the end of the first act. It still drifted down in thick flurries, and the snow had now risen above his ankles, making walking increasingly difficult.

After getting his bearings, Chen Ling headed straight for Frost Street... He did not know why he was going back. There was nothing left there anymore.

But other than Frost Street, where else could he go?

Chen Ling did not know. That little house on Frost Street was his only refuge in this world, even if it had never left him with many good memories...

"Chen Ling!!"

Just as Chen Ling reached the vicinity of his home, a voice rang out from nearby.

Wu Youdong strode swiftly through the snow with surprising agility and came before him. "Chen Ling, where did you go earlier? Are you feeling better?"

"Why are you here?" Chen Ling looked at Wu Youdong in surprise. Just a few hours ago, Wu Youdong had been leaning on a crutch and half-dead. Now, he moved freely and looked full of life.

"I came to thank that miracle doctor!" Wu Youdong said excitedly. "That man living in your house, he's incredible! I remember talking to him, then everything suddenly went black. When I woke up again, my leg was healed!

"The clinic doctor said I'd need at least half a year of rest, and there was a good chance it would leave lasting damage... But he healed me in an instant!

"I hurt myself doing heavy work before, and whenever the weather turned cloudy or rainy, my knees and joints would ache. But now I can't feel a thing, and most importantly...

"I think I got taller again!"

Chen Ling looked Wu Youdong over and could clearly tell that he had indeed grown taller... Before, the top of Wu Youdong's head had only reached Chen Ling's chin. Now, it was nearly at his nose.

Chu Muyun was that capable?

"He's already left." Chen Ling paused before adding, "And most likely, he won't be coming back."

Wu Youdong froze for a moment, unable to hide the disappointment on his face...

"Alright, then I'll head back first."

After watching Wu Youdong walk away, Chen Ling returned to his front door. Just as he was about to push it open, his hand stopped in midair.

He stared at the old eaves, narrowing his eyes as a faint glimmer flashed through his pupils.

The extreme attention to detail granted by [Mystic Eye] instantly fixed on the scattered traces of snow atop the eaves.

Something was wrong...

Someone had entered the house while he was gone.

And they most likely had not come back out.

Chen Ling cautiously withdrew his arm and silently took two steps back through the snow. Just then, a voice slowly sounded from inside the house.

"Good observation. Come in." It was Han Meng's voice, as low and heavy as ever. "You didn't think you could avoid coming home forever, did you?"

Seeing that his movements had been exposed, Chen Ling frowned deeply. After hesitating for a moment, he still shoved the front door open.

"What are you doing in my house?" he asked in a low voice as he looked at Han Meng seated beside the dining table.

"Investigating."

"How are you any different from a burglar breaking into someone's home?"

"Enforcers have the authority to enforce the law and investigate. Do I really need to explain that to you?" Han Meng tapped the tabletop with his knuckles. "Forget merely entering to investigate. Even if I burned this house down, what could you do about it?"

"..." Chen Ling's gaze grew colder and colder.

"Still, I truly didn't expect you to know Chu Muyun... How did you two meet?"

"What does that have to do with you?"

"I am questioning you as the Chief Law Enforcer of the Third District, Chen Ling. Watch your attitude." Han Meng's eyes narrowed slightly as an inexplicable pressure abruptly enveloped the living room!

Chen Ling held his gaze for a long time before slowly speaking.

"Doctor Lin from the corner clinic introduced us."

"Why did you go to see a doctor?"

"I wasn't feeling well at the time."

"You weren't feeling well, so you needed to ask for Chu Muyun? Were you really physically unwell, or had your mind... been contaminated by the Ash Realm?" Han Meng's gaze suddenly sharpened, like an eagle that could see straight through the human heart.

"I..." Chen Ling's heart jolted. Before Han Meng, he suddenly felt as though he had nowhere left to hide.

"On the night the Calamity appeared, you spoke to Jiang Qin and said your younger brother was crouching on the street corner. But today, while investigating Ice Spring Street in the Second District, I discovered that your younger brother, Chen Yan, had all his organs removed several days ago and died. So who was this younger brother you mentioned that night?"

"..."

"I searched the entire house. There are signs that only two people lived here: you and Chu Muyun. Then why are there three bowls in the sink? Who was that bowl for?"

"..."

"Before coming here, I spoke to Wu Youdong. He said you lit candles in the house alone, and then..."

"Enough!!"

Chen Ling abruptly rose to his feet, his eyes bloodshot.

"Yes! I'm crazy, alright?!"

"There's something wrong with my head! I can see A-Yan! I think he's right beside me!!"

"Not long ago! He was building a snowman by the door! Blowing out candles with me in the house! He said he wanted to go back to school, wanted to perform opera at the New Year's Eve gala! To me, he's a living, breathing person!"

"He was just an ordinary child! He got sick! He wanted to get better! He wanted to stand openly onstage and perform someday! What did he do wrong?!"

"Han Meng! You're standing here aggressively questioning me now, but where were you when those people on Ice Spring Street killed my brother?!"

"Where were you when they colluded with Enforcers and drove one ordinary person after another to their deaths?!"

"Where was your authority to investigate?! Where was your authority to enforce the law?!!"

Han Meng's body suddenly trembled.

Chen Ling's chest heaved violently as he stared fixedly into Han Meng's eyes... Han Meng's once-calm gaze contracted slightly, and he unconsciously looked away from Chen Ling.

He simply sat there in silence, his head lowered like a statue.