Black Knife Daoist

"What do you want?"

"Hahaha... Comrade Zhang Hongxing, it seems you've misunderstood us."

Wang Desheng had not expected Zhang Hongxing to ask that.

"I haven't misunderstood you. I love this country just as much."

"Then what do you mean?"

"What do you want? Or rather, what do you want me to do?"

"Hahaha... I suppose I judged a gentleman by my own petty standards." Wang Desheng laughed to hide his embarrassment. Even when negotiating with representatives from other countries, he had never been at the slightest disadvantage.

Yet this one phone call had rattled him twice.

"Comrade Zhang Hongxing, we don't want you to do anything. I called because I wanted to ask whether that method of changing the weather could be put into widespread use.

"As you know, countries everywhere have sent people here because of it. If we can get a clear answer from you, it'll make the upcoming meetings easier to conduct."

The formation at the Biler Red Valley outpost was no simple formation. To set it up, Zhang Hongxing had not only spent a drop of blood essence, but even lost an entire realm of cultivation.

If he had to set them all up himself, he could never manage it, even with an unlimited supply of electricity to absorb for his breakthroughs.

Besides, his blood essence was finite.

But the way Wang Desheng had phrased his question made it clear that he badly needed a weather-changing method that could be widely deployed.

Only after thinking for quite some time did Zhang Hongxing speak.

"This can't be put into widespread use for now. Even if I gave it everything I had, I could only cover a few places. Still, I can try researching it. If possible, I'll need some scientific researchers to work with me.

"Also, I want to base the research in my hometown. I don't want to go long stretches without seeing my family."

Wang Desheng had stayed on the line, quietly waiting for Zhang Hongxing to speak. As it turned out, the wait had been worthwhile.

"All right, I can try finding some people for you. But don't expect much funding or manpower. I have faith in you, but that doesn't mean everyone else does.

"Of course, if you produce something worthwhile, that'll be a different story."

"I don't mind any of that. Just handle it as you see fit."

"Good. Then we have a deal."

"All right."

After ending the call, Zhang Hongxing resumed his lunch. His flight to Xinzhou would depart in another hour, so he needed to hurry.

If he missed this flight, he would have to wait until evening for the next one.

He had no desire to get home in the dead of night.

Meanwhile, after hanging up, Wang Desheng still did not eat right away. He sat alone in silence for half an hour before hastily eating a bowl of instant noodles.

Since Zhang Hongxing's method could not be widely deployed, they would have to adjust their plans a little.

Shimen County, Xinzhou.

288 North Bridge Road, where Zhang Hongxing's home stood.

A Daoist in a gray robe stood silently on a rooftop over a hundred meters away, looking toward the house.

His face was deathly pale, with a few wisps of beard hanging loosely from his chin. When the wind blew, his skeletal frame showed intermittently beneath his robe.

"Three days, and I still can't make out a thing. Since when did Xinzhou have someone like this?"

The Daoist muttered under his breath. He had spent almost all of the past three days on this rooftop. During that time, he had only ventured half a step inside the thirty-meter radius around Zhang Hongxing's home.

That half step alone had left him stunned.

Such skill in laying formations had completely upended his understanding.

Unsure of the formation maker's actual strength, the Daoist had not dared act rashly. Instead, he had hidden at a safe distance and watched carefully.

He had kept watching for three days.

Yet he had not seen a single person who looked like an expert.

Two children, three women, and one young man—none had given him any sense of danger. They seemed to be ordinary people.

Of course, he could not rule out the possibility that the expert was so powerful that he could not sense his presence at all.

But that was only speculation.

He would not abandon his purpose here over mere speculation.

"Whatever the case, I have to give it a try."

A vicious gleam flashed through the old Daoist's eyes. Then he jumped down from the roof and walked forward.

The closer he got, the more cautious he became. Just as he approached the thirty-meter boundary, a dagger covered in strange patterns appeared in his hand.

The dagger was pitch-black from hilt to tip.

Then the old Daoist stepped into the formation.

The scenery before him immediately began to change. The house vanished, and so did the courtyard. In their place appeared a dense forest, with towering trees, birds occasionally flitting over the treetops, and tiny insects in the grass.

Everything was lifelike.

The old Daoist casually parted a patch of grass and caught a small black insect. He placed it on his arm, letting it crawl freely, then closed his eyes.

The sensation of the insect crawling over his skin did not disappear when he shut his eyes.

The shock in the old Daoist's eyes grew more pronounced.

His reason told him that all of this was false, that it was an enormous illusion formation. Yet his senses kept feeding him one convincing detail after another.

Slash.

The black dagger sliced the insect in two. Dark green fluid ran onto his arm, while both halves of the insect continued to twitch.

The old Daoist dipped his index finger into the fluid and held it beneath his nose.

Neither the fluid's viscosity nor its peculiar, nauseating smell had changed in the slightest.

Just what kind of formidable expert was this?

The Daoist was already considering retreat, but the thought of his organization's orders forced him to suppress the urge.

Since he could not retreat, he could only press onward.

The forest path ahead was clearly not an option. The old Daoist hacked through the grass and trees, choosing to forge his own route. His approach proved correct, and he soon reached the courtyard wall.

It towered into the clouds, smooth as a mirror.

No one could possibly climb such a wall.

The corners of the Daoist's mouth lifted slightly. He leaped three meters into the air, exactly the height of the real courtyard wall, then drove his dagger viciously into it.

Pop.

Like a punctured soap bubble, the illusion vanished entirely. The courtyard, the small house, and the Great Mulberry Tree with leaves so green they were almost black appeared before him.

He was now standing right on top of the courtyard wall.

"Black Knife Daoist has come to pay a visit. Why doesn't the master of this place come out to meet me?"

"Black Knife Daoist has come to pay a visit..."

"Black Knife Daoist..."

The Daoist did not lower his guard just because he had broken through the illusion. Only after shouting three times without anyone appearing did he cautiously vault into the courtyard and head straight for the Great Mulberry Tree in the backyard.

Clearly, the Great Mulberry Tree was his target this time.

Once he approached his target, the Daoist first recited a strange incantation at the Great Mulberry Tree. Only then did he raise his dagger and drive it into the center of the trunk.

Shunk.

The entire dagger sank into the trunk as easily as if it were piercing tofu.

Bad!

The Daoist silently cursed and darted backward.

But even after a long wait, nothing changed.

The courtyard was still the same courtyard, and the small house was still the same small house.

The Great Mulberry Tree had not changed either.