True Solution of the Sword Dao
Chapter 257 - 245: Fangs I

Chapter 257: Chapter 245: Fangs I

Three days later, Ping City Long-Distance Bus Station

2:23 PM

The skies were overcast, casting a gloomy pall over the entirety of Ping City.

In the bus station, rows of coaches were neatly arrayed, with one slowly reversing into a parking spot while another had just opened its doors, its passengers beginning to disembark.

Among those alighting, a brawny man with tawny hair and piercing eyes made his way off the bus, carrying a suitcase much like the others, but his was a dark brown hue. He wore a grey, tight-fitting T-shirt and camouflage military trousers, a large white ’A’ emblazoned across the chest of the shirt.

His dark skin suggested he wasn’t much older than thirty or forty, and although his facial features only differed subtly from the Eastern folk, the faint blue hue of his eyes was a clear indication of his foreign origins.

The man looked around the bus station and eventually saw a sign by the parking lot’s entrance.

"Welcome... to Ping City Bus Station," he murmured in Hua Nation’s tongue, a faint smile crossing his face.

"Finally here, this is the place."

*****************

A residential building in the No.1 family compound.

Lin You lay on her bed with bare feet up in the air, engrossed in a fashion magazine. Clad only in a tank top and shorts, her pale legs swayed back and forth continuously.

"Lin You, I’ve got some rather unfortunate news," Feil said from a writing desk nearby, equally engrossed in a small ball of yarn.

"What news? Don’t tell me it’s about training; Chris has just left, It’s finally time for a break," Lin You replied without looking up.

"It’s not about training," said Feil, sounding helpless. "Regrettably, as of now, my savings are almost depleted."

"Savings?" Lin You tilted her head. "Really? Don’t you still have several hundred thousand dollars in the bank?"

Feil nodded: "The security equipment for Cheng Guang was too expensive. It didn’t take long for it to drain my funds. We can’t expect her to pay for that, can we?"

"That’s true. Besides, it’s no big deal if all the surveillance equipment is already in place, right?" Lin You remarked nonchalantly.

"Technically, yes, but I’ve been buying intelligence with money. Now that I’m out of money, our only source of intelligence is cut off," Feil explained.

"So, what do we do?" Even Lin You felt the seriousness of the situation.

"We need to think of a way to make money," Feil said resignedly.

*******************

"Crim?" Lin Fei frowned as she stood on the rooftop, leaning against the railing with a phone in hand. "Who’s that?"

On the other end of the call, Lu Jun’s voice was steady and forceful, "One of Australia’s top mercenaries. Quite capable."

"How capable? A D-level powerhouse?" Lin Fei turned and leaned against the railing with her back towards it. She was alone on the rooftop terrace, free of any concerns.

"Probably. What’s more troublesome is that he’s a D-level speedster. Xu Ruoruo also said he’s tricky; she might be able to defeat him, but killing him is out of the question. Furthermore, if he intends to avoid combat right from the start, she would be powerless," Lu Jun said gravely.

"Speedsters can be a real pain," Lin Fei acknowledged, herself being one, which made her all too aware of the issues. If a speedster was determined to avoid fighting, it was virtually impossible to catch them—unless you were faster. And the ones who could potentially overpower him, like Yuan Yicheng and Xu Ruoruo, were not speedsters.

"Do you know why he’s here? He might not necessarily be after Lin You," Lin Fei speculated with a frown.

"But the likelihood is over eighty percent," Lu Jun explained. "As a high-level mercenary, he wouldn’t come to Hua Nation for no reason, especially since jobs aren’t lacking in Australia. Moreover, he abandoned an important mission just to come here, directly heading for Ping City. In the whole of Ping City, the only thing likely to attract him is the Energy Scepter."

"Aside from you and Xu Ruoruo, who else in the company knows about Lin You?"

"No one else; I’ve kept the secret well-guarded. However, her information was exposed to the outside when she was abandoned by the heretics. So whether it’s leaked or not doesn’t make much difference."

"Most people interested in the Energy Scepter are tempted by the bounties offered by the Holy See and the magic community. But those bounties might allure the ordinary powerhouses while meaning little to the stronger ones. Plus, with Sis getting injured here last time, it discouraged many. On top of that, there seem to be signs of full-scale war brewing between the heretics and the Holy See, so few people are still drawn to the Energy Scepter. To them, it’s as outdated as a 70s or 80s bicycle," Lu Jun shared, indicating he had done substantial research on the matter.

"Perhaps you should come back," he finally suggested. "The situation has been unstable lately. With Shueisha having gone from Five Stars to One Star, there’ve been significant upheavals, and some important cities and provinces are showing signs of wanting to break away."

"Alright, I got it. Hanging up now," Lin Fei ended the call.

"Mhm."

The clouds were dense in the sky, tinged with an oppressive, suffocating feel. A cool breeze hit Lin Fei’s face, frosty and damp.

"Independence? A war between the Holy See and the heretics, Crim. Perhaps it’s time for a return," he murmured to himself.

********************

Ping City

Inside a rental house near No. 1 Middle School

Merrill sat in front of a computer that had been transformed into a laboratory, her hands typing away frenetically on the keyboard.

Similarly, Cheng Guang was also clacking away on her notebook computer. Both of them appeared to be very busy.

Only Lin You, holding Feil, sat idly to the side.

Clack!

Cheng Guang hit the enter key forcefully, a satisfied smile crossing her face.

"It’s finished. It’s called the most perfect surveillance system with no blind spots," she said, spinning her notebook around to face the others. The screen confronted them squarely.

Dozens of minimized surveillance feeds were neatly organized on the screen.

Lin You leaned in for a closer look and suddenly pointed at one of the feeds.

"Isn’t that the hallway below my house? Are you even monitoring there?"

"Yes, we’re not leaving any blind spots," Cheng Guang said proudly. "Ah, right, there’s one device that I haven’t concealed properly yet. I’ll go handle it." She slapped her head and quickly stood up. "I’ll be back in a bit."

"Okay," Lin You and Feil in her arms both nodded. A person and a cat watched as Cheng Guang opened the door and walked out.

The sound of footsteps in the stairwell slowly faded.

Whoosh!

Merrill suddenly swiveled her chair around, stood up quickly, and went to the notebook on the table. Her hands flew over it, typing rapidly, while she checked every part of the notebook’s casing.

"No listening devices or recorders," she muttered, nodding.

"What are you doing?" Lin You asked, puzzled. After spending some time together, she had come to realize that Merrill was actually a person who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside, with a temper that couldn’t stand provocation, but otherwise fine.

Merrill straightened up and said, "You guys don’t really trust this Cheng Guang that much, do you?"

"Is that not okay?" Lin You asked with widened eyes, puzzled.

"We need a process of verification," Merrill stated gravely. "I have to remind you of something crucial. Regarding the matter of Lin You’s constitution, you must absolutely not leak it, and it’s best if you don’t tell Cheng Guang either. It’s better if this matter just rots in our few hearts."

"Why?" Lin You was confused. "Didn’t she prove that she’s Uncle Xilan’s disciple and adoptive daughter?"

"It’s better to be safe. We haven’t interacted with her for long enough to see what kind of person she really is. Your constitution involves secrets that are extremely significant; we must be careful!" Merrill said sternly. "After spending some time together, if Cheng Guang really has no other intentions and indeed stands with us, then it won’t be too late to tell her then."

"That is true," Feil nodded his feline head. "If this secret is leaked, it could lead to a wave of high-level psychics coming after us. Let alone our current average strength which isn’t even at the D-level Peak. Even if it were, we would only be waiting for death."

"Alright then," Lin You understood.

Soon, Cheng Guang reopened the door and returned to the room. She saw everyone gathered around the notebook computer.

"How is it? No problems with my surveillance system, right?"

"It’s good! Really nice," Merrill said with a smile. "With us at the center, almost the entire No. 1 Middle School region and the two streets nearby are completely within the surveillance scope. We have plenty of advance warning and reaction time."

"Of course," Cheng Guang said as she walked over, turned the notebook towards her and suddenly, her expression changed slightly. "I didn’t expect that right after finishing, we would have a visitor."

"What?" Lin You leaned in.

"Here." Cheng Guang pointed at a small screen on the upper right, tapping lightly, and the screen immediately enlarged.

It was a street view. Vehicles flowed continuously, and amid the hurried stream of pedestrians on the sidewalk, a man with a faint, weak blue glow on his body appeared on the surveillance feed. The camera angle was high, looking down, clearly showing the man with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, carrying a dark brown suitcase in his right hand, wearing a tight grey T-shirt and camouflage pants, and looking quite muscular.

"See the blue glow on this person?" Cheng Guang said in a grave tone.

Merrill and Lin You both nodded.

"This is a special device I’ve customized that has the ability to detect a psychic’s energy level. The blue glow indicates that he is not an ordinary person, but a psychic," Cheng Guang announced seriously. "And as it happens, I know this person. His name is Crim Obufeil. He’s a high-level mercenary that often operates in Australia. He is very strong. He has a nickname, ’Swift Wolf.’" (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to go to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendations, Monthly Tickets, and your support is my greatest motivation.)