Saint Mother

For the next several days, Zhang Ping studied ore sorting with Qiu Qiang at Iron Soul during the day, then learned boxing with Wang Jieming at Beast King Fist Hall during the first half of the night.

During the latter half of the night, he put on the black trench coat he had bought, wrapped himself in Nether Mist, and wandered Mingzhu City's streets. Drunks and homeless people who happened to encounter him could always provide him with quite a bit of fear.

He was not deliberately trying to scare people. He was searching for the human traitors hidden within Mingzhu City.

The Cleanup Team had already placed the entire city under surveillance, yet they still had not discovered anything unusual. That in itself was the greatest abnormality.

Zhang Ping was certain that if descendants of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family were truly plotting something, now was their best opportunity.

With the Heavenly Fox stationed at the City Lord's Manor, Situ Shibai would not dare act rashly. Yet the Heavenly Fox had also been countered by the Cleanup Team, leaving it equally blind.

The Beast-Taming Zhu Family only needed to evade the Cleanup Team's surveillance. Whatever they wished to do would go unnoticed.

Zhang Ping did not know how these people had evaded surveillance, nor did he know their purpose. But he wanted to find them and teach them a harsh lesson.

Midnight.

The autumn wind was a little chilly.

Under the ghastly pale moonlight, Zhang Ping was wreathed in Nether Mist. The Reaper's Mask on his face constantly shifted, turning into the deathly visages of countless beings—horrifying and terrifying.

However, he could not see his own face, so he did not find it frightening at all.

"Hey, wake up."

As he patrolled the streets, he saw an adventurer passed out drunk by the roadside. He walked over and patted the man's shoulder, his voice becoming ethereal and hollow after passing through the Nether Mist.

After being patted several times, the drunkard frowned and opened his eyes. Before he could curse, he saw Zhang Ping's face. His eyes immediately bulged, then rolled back as he passed out cold.

The quality of the fear was pretty good!

Satisfied, Zhang Ping picked up the drunkard and moved him somewhere safer.

Although Mingzhu City was protected by the Cleanup Team, no one could guarantee that Mutated Beasts would not sneak into the city. After all, he had encountered an Armored Venom-Tail Rat in a small park before.

A drunkard who was dead drunk, even if he had considerable strength while awake, was not much stronger than an ordinary person after losing consciousness.

Even the weakest Mutated Beast would still be extremely dangerous.

After settling the drunkard, Zhang Ping continued his night patrol through Mingzhu City.

Mingzhu City's roads extended in every direction.

Because construction had been unregulated, many buildings had even been built by Awakened themselves. Their structures completely defied the principles of architectural mechanics, yet such buildings not only did not collapse, but could even stand for centuries. Neither earthquakes nor floods had affected them.

These strange buildings divided many of Mingzhu City's roads, twisting and winding like a maze.

Once people entered such places, anyone unfamiliar with Mingzhu City could easily get lost.

At this moment, three men wearing copper rings around their heads and carrying green lanterns emerged from a residence. They silently moved through the alleyways before finally arriving near a luxurious estate.

"Are you sure she's inside?" one of the men asked.

This man was nearly forty, with an utterly ordinary appearance. The only unusual thing about him was his vermilion-red eyes.

"Master, Chen Xueli has hidden her very carefully, but today is her fourteenth birthday. I can guarantee with my head that she's inside today," the man's subordinate said firmly.

The man nodded. "Prepare to move. Set down the Dragon-Sealing Stones first. Go!"

His two subordinates immediately split up and began making arrangements around the estate.

Not far away, Zhang Ping, who had happened to patrol here, leaned against a wall and silently watched the three men.

After the three scattered, he quietly used Appraisal. However, the Appraisal Technique failed repeatedly. Once he confirmed that he could not appraise them, he took out the badge Situ Shibai had left him from the Golden Treasury.

This badge could only contact Situ Shibai and Liu Sishan.

"Big Sis Sisi, I'm near Number Thirteen Skyfire Road. I found three suspicious people who seem to intend harm toward someone in an estate," Zhang Ping said. Rather than contact Situ Shibai, he contacted Liu Sishan.

Outside the city, countless Water Whips around Liu Sishan continuously strangled the Mutated Bats in the air. Holding the badge, she said calmly, "Got it. I'll ask Manny. Wait a moment."

She then contacted Manny and asked about the surveillance situation on Skyfire Road.

"Big Sis Sisi, there's nothing unusual on Skyfire Road. We didn't find anyone," Manny quickly replied.

She and Chen Luowei had both checked once. In theory, nothing within the Illusory Light Curtain could escape their notice. Yet this time was extremely strange. Not only had they not found the people Zhang Ping mentioned, they had not even found Zhang Ping himself.

Liu Sishan instantly realized something was wrong.

She cut off contact with Manny, then contacted Zhang Ping again. "Don't act rashly. Wait for me to get there."

After saying that, she ended the connection and looked up at the Mutated Bats filling the sky.

Zhang Ping put away the badge and continued observing the three men in the distance.

The three wore identical headbands. Those headbands were probably some kind of special equipment, though he did not know what their abilities were.

The green lanterns were also suspicious. He guessed one of those two pieces of equipment was being used to conceal them from the Cleanup Team's surveillance, while the other was used to block the Appraisal Technique.

After thinking it over, Zhang Ping simply transformed his body into a Pure Water Body, then changed into a snake.

Under the cover of Nether Mist, he looked like a massive black python.

He quickly slithered onto a building, transformed back into a human on the roof, and looked down into the estate.

The estate's walls were nearly three meters high. Everything inside was blurred, and he could not see anything at all. But after waiting roughly fifteen minutes, the view suddenly became clear again, revealing a courtyard with a pool beyond the walls.

Many flowers and plants had been cultivated in the courtyard, and it was obvious they had been carefully tended.

"So that's it. The stones they placed can break the estate's barrier."

After observing for a while, Zhang Ping's gaze fell upon the stones the others had placed outside the walls. After a moment's thought, he immediately used Appraisal.

After Appraisal failed three times, it finally succeeded.

[Dragon-Sealing Stone (East): Placing four Dragon-Sealing Stones in their corresponding positions will form the Dragon-Sealing Battle-Breaking Barrier, capable of covering most barriers.]

The next moment, Zhang Ping saw the scene of the Dragon-Sealing Stone's creation.

A turning millstone.

Awakened screaming in agony.

Drops of blood fell one after another, passing through a funnel-shaped piece of special equipment before eventually becoming black liquid.

That black liquid was then infused into the Dragon-Sealing Stone through another piece of special equipment resembling a Saint Mother's Tears Candlestick. The eyes of the black dragon coiled around the Dragon-Sealing Stone gradually lit up, turning blood-red...

After watching, Zhang Ping's expression darkened.

Sure enough, the creation process of most special equipment and items was incomparably evil, bloody, and inhumane.

Zhang Ping took a deep breath, and his eyes gradually became resolute.

In this world, besides eliminating every Heavenly Fox, he now had another goal.

He absolutely could not allow the Beast-Taming Zhu Family to rise again from the ashes!

Ahead.

After setting up the anti-barrier, the three men stopped beneath the wall.

The leader took out three vials of medicine and handed two to his subordinates. Once they had all drunk the medicine, they immediately climbed over the wall and entered the inner residence.

The owner of this residence was very powerful.

Even while resting, the three could sense that powerful aura, like a giant dragon coiled within.

Chen Xueli, the son of Chen Shihai, Old Scholar Chen, was a fifty-five-year-old Top-Tier Awakened and the head of Vast Sea Academy. He was currently resting in this residence.

Their target was Chen Xueli's granddaughter, Chen Juntaing! They did not intend to use Chen Juntaing to threaten Chen Xueli. Rather, Chen Juntaing was also an Awakened, and her awakened ability was extraordinarily important to their plan—one could even say she was the most crucial link.

Using the location of Chen Xueli's bedroom, the three quickly deduced the location of the women's quarters.

They cautiously approached the women's quarters. Then one of them used telekinesis to open a door.

"Not her."

The vermilion-eyed man glanced at the middle-aged woman in the room, then shook his head.

They checked room after room. Even Zhang Ping in the distance could tell that they were searching for someone.

However, Zhang Ping did not know whom they were looking for, so he patiently watched. Only by identifying their target could he infer their purpose from that target.

These remnants of the Beast-Taming Family were definitely brewing some enormous conspiracy. He absolutely could not let them succeed!

Outside the city, Liu Sishan finally dealt with every mutated bat. Her body was enveloped in pure water as she rapidly moved toward the city.

Her movements were quickly noticed by people lurking in the shadows. Several men in black swiftly slipped into the darkness and sent a warning to the three inside the Chen family estate in the distance.

When the vermilion-eyed man received the warning, he was briefly stunned. Then he turned and surveyed his surroundings, but he did not discover Zhang Ping.

"Master, what's wrong?" the subordinate beside him asked softly.

The vermilion-eyed man said in a low voice, "We've been discovered. Ten seconds left. If we still haven't found her, abandon the mission."

They then accelerated their search. When telekinesis opened the window of a room, the vermilion-eyed man's eyes lit up. "That's her. Take her and prepare to withdraw."

The subordinate with telekinesis immediately lifted the girl in the room and carried her outside. Another subordinate lightly tapped the girl's temple, and her body instantly went limp. She had clearly fallen unconscious.

The three men carried the girl over the wall and immediately fled westward, in the exact opposite direction from Liu Sishan.

"They're getting away."

Zhang Ping immediately followed them while using Appraisal on the unconscious girl.

A moment later, the appraisal succeeded.

[Appraisal successful]

[Name: Chen Juntaing]

[Race: Human]

[Affiliation: Vast Sea Academy]

[Potential: ????????????]

[Lifespan: 120]

[Rank: Intermediate Awakened]

[Level: 13]

[Talent]

[Saint Mother's Blood: The blood within the body possesses the ability to influence all life. Those who drink the holy blood will be unable to use their abilities and will suffer repeated misfortune.]

[Advanced Skill]

[Intermediate—Saint Mother's Halo: Activates the Saint Mother's power within the bloodline, forming a ring of holy light behind the back. Affinity will greatly increase, and all living beings will have a chance of being influenced into becoming your fanatical followers.]

This girl had the highest potential he had ever seen so far.

The problem was that potential was ultimately only potential. Before it became actual strength, it did not really mean much.

Her ability was very special, but...

After reading the appraisal results, Zhang Ping could not help frowning. He could not figure out the three men's purpose.

If they intended to use Chen Juntaing's ability, the problem was that Chen Juntaing herself was only an Intermediate Awakened. At most, her ability could affect Awakened below the intermediate rank. What use was that?

Wait!

Zhang Ping suddenly realized, belatedly, that the Saint Mother as he understood it and the Saint Mother in this world did not seem to mean the same thing.

Saint Mother's Blood...

Could it be that the bloodline within Chen Juntaing truly came from some Saint Mother among her ancestors?

Could it be that, like Nether Mist, Chen Juntaing's ability also possessed power that transcended ranks?