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Zhou Jianguo tapped his fingers lightly against the desk.

"Have we cleared up his background?"

Another woman, who wore glasses, spoke.

"We have. He was an orphan from childhood and grew up in the Jiangcheng Orphanage. He and Zhou Yan, who just joined the Paranormal Bureau, have been friends since they were children."

"After that, he went to school and worked as normal, with nothing unusual. All records show that he was still an ordinary person a month ago."

She paused and adjusted her glasses.

"But a month later, he suddenly awakened and displayed multiple abilities. Fire, lightning, wind, Teleportation, and those eyes called the 'Sharingan.' Based on the intelligence we currently have, he has already demonstrated at least five different abilities."

"A Bloodline Inheritor," someone blurted out.

Zhou Jianguo nodded.

"That was my thought as well. Only Bloodline Inheritors can possess such diverse abilities after awakening." He looked at everyone. "The question now is, which lineage does his bloodline come from?"

Everyone fell silent.

The Four Great Top Clans, the Subordinate Clans, and some Hidden Families all had records of bloodline inheritance.

But Lin Jin's file was too clean, so clean that it offered no clues at all.

"Keep investigating," Zhou Jianguo said. "But be careful how you do it. Don't anger him. Judging by how he saved Jiangcheng, he's worth winning over. We can't afford to offend him lightly."

He looked at the woman with glasses.

"Notify the Jiangcheng Paranormal Bureau to raise Lin Jin's benefits another level. Also, have them interact more. Their relationship seems quite good."

The woman nodded and noted it down.

Zhou Jianguo stood and looked out the window.

"Dark Moon suffered heavy losses this time. They won't let this go. The Demon Suppression Bureau has already sent people over. We need to be prepared as well."

He turned around, his gaze deep.

"This Lin Jin might become a fuse in our fight against Dark Moon."

Capital City, the Zhao Clan.

Zhao Ming stood in the center of the training room, the tip of the lance in his hand resting on the ground, lightning coiling around him.

Opposite him, a man in black knelt on the floor, reporting the intelligence from Jiangcheng.

"He slew an S-Rank Weird single-handedly. He also completely destroyed the entire Weird Domain."

Zhao Ming's brows furrowed slightly.

"Is the intelligence accurate?"

"Yes. The Paranormal Bureau's report has already reached headquarters. Our people saw its contents."

Zhao Ming fell silent for a few seconds.

He recalled how, not long ago, he had called Lin Jin a frog in a well who had no idea how vast the world was.

He had even sent Zhao Cheng to secretly warn him to stay away from Su Qianxue.

He had also considered teaching him a lesson, to show him whom he couldn't afford to provoke.

Now it seemed...

He really had underestimated him. Thinking back to how he had actually wanted to make Lin Jin his follower, it seemed rather laughable now.

An S-Rank Weird was equivalent to the Domain Realm, and even stronger than an ordinary Domain Realm opponent.

The dangers of an S-Rank Weird Domain were even further beyond what an ordinary person in the Domain Realm could face.

Zhao Ming himself was in the middle of the Domain Realm. With his Thunder Body and Battle Lance Art, he was confident he was invincible among those of the same level.

He believed he could also kill an S-Rank Weird alone and destroy an entire Weird Domain.

But... he couldn't possibly do it so cleanly and decisively.

At least, not now.

"That Lin Jin... how strong is he?" he asked in a low voice.

The man in black lowered his head.

"We can't be certain. But judging by his achievements, he's at least in the middle of the Domain Realm. We estimate his combat strength to be at least at the Domain Realm Peak, and he might even be..."

He did not finish.

But Zhao Ming understood.

The Transcendent Stage Realm.

He tightened his grip on his lance.

After a long while, he released it and returned the lance to the weapon rack.

"Have Zhao Cheng come back," he said, his voice frighteningly calm. "Don't cause any more trouble for that Lin Jin for now."

The man in black froze.

"Young master, then what about Miss Su..."

Zhao Ming fell silent for a second.

He turned around, his back to the man in black.

"I need to enter seclusion for a while. Keep an eye on the Zhao Clan's affairs during that time."

The man in black lowered his head.

"Yes."

He withdrew.

Zhao Ming was left alone in the training room.

He looked at the ancestral teachings on the wall, a trace of complexity flashing through his eyes.

Could an unaffiliated Bloodline Inheritor come this far too?

Or was it...

That the bloodline Lin Jin had awakened wasn't so simple?

No matter what, as the Zhao Clan's only Bloodline Inheritor in this generation, I, Zhao Ming, will never lose to anyone!

Capital City, the Su Clan.

Su Qianxue's father, Su Qishan, the head of the Su Clan, sat in his study, reading the intelligence in his hands.

An elderly man stood beside him, the Su Clan's old butler.

"This Lin Jin is the person you mentioned last time, the one Qianxue met in Jiangcheng?" Su Zhenshan asked.

The old butler nodded.

"Yes. The young miss has been in close contact with him and once invited him to dinner alone. According to the reports, the two get along well."

Su Qishan was silent for a while.

"What do you think of his strength?"

The old butler considered it.

"At least late Domain Realm. Given how efficiently he destroyed the S-Rank Weird Domain, he could be higher."

"The Transcendent Stage Realm?"

"We can't rule it out."

Su Qishan set down the intelligence and leaned back in his chair.

"That girl Qianxue has a good eye."

The old butler smiled.

"Do you mean...?"

Su Qishan waved a hand.

"Let's wait and see. A Bloodline Inheritor with limitless potential-if he really can reach the Transcendent Stage Realm, the marriage agreement with the Zhao Clan... isn't beyond discussion."

"When the time comes, I'll have an explanation for the ancestor as well."

He paused.

"But it's too early to talk about that now. Dark Moon won't let this go. Although the Demon Suppression Bureau has also set its sights on him, he'll still have no shortage of trouble ahead."

"Besides... that organization certainly won't turn a blind eye to an unaffiliated Bloodline Inheritor."

He looked at the butler beside him.

"Have our people in Jiangcheng pay closer attention. If necessary, they can help him in secret. But don't reveal their identities."

"Yes." The old butler bowed and withdrew.

Su Qishan murmured, "My girl, as clan head, I must put the clan's interests first. But... as your father, I also hope you can choose your own fate."

The outskirts of Jiangcheng, Dark Moon Base.

In the dim basement, Old Seven and Old Nine sat across from each other.

The computer screen on the table displayed the same intelligence.

After reading it, the two remained silent for a long time.

Old Nine spoke first, his voice hoarse.

"Back then... should we have kept an even lower profile?"

Old Seven gave a bitter smile.

"What's the point of saying that now?"

He pointed at the information on the screen.

"Everything our Jiangcheng base accumulated over all these years was wiped out overnight."

Old Nine gritted his teeth.

"What did the higher-ups say?"

Old Seven was silent for a few seconds.

"They told us to stand down for now and leave that man alone."

Old Nine froze for a moment.

"We're just letting it go?"

"What else can we do?" Old Seven looked at him. "Can you beat him?"

Old Nine had no answer.

Both of them were in the early Domain Realm, far stronger than those two Source Energy Stage subordinates.

But against someone who could clear an S-Rank Weird Domain alone...

Going up against him would just be throwing their lives away.

"The higher-ups said," Old Seven began, "that this man has already been reported to headquarters. Someone stronger will come to deal with him. We only need to watch him and get a clear picture of his movements and abilities."

Old Nine nodded.

"Then what do we do now?"

Old Seven stood and walked to the window, looking out at Jiangcheng's distant nightscape.

"Wait."

A cold glint flashed in his eyes.

"Wait for the experts from headquarters to arrive. When that happens, this Lin Jin, and all of Jiangcheng, will pay the price."