Chapter 375: Chapter 337: Fear Not, Doubt Not, I Shall Deliver You

"We just got word. A total of eighteen cities, including Lanshan City, Jingyang City, Dragon Tiger City, Pushe City, and others, were all attacked by those men in black last night!"

"Our losses here were comparatively lighter; we didn’t suffer too many casualties!"

"But places like Lanshan and Pushe were hit hard!"

"The students at Lanshan University, in particular, suffered heavy casualties!"

Wei Shang walked over and gave a full rundown of the latest casualty figures.

When Lin Yi, Chu Zhengxiong, Meng Yu, and the others heard this news,

their expressions all turned grave.

Chu Zhengxiong quickly pressed, "What about the Demon Hunting Teams in those cities?"

Wei Shang glanced at him, his face darkening as he shook his head.

"The casualties were catastrophic. Several squads were completely wiped out, and the others... have almost no one left!"

THUD—

Hearing this, Chu Zhengxiong smashed his fist into a nearby tree.

The massive tree, thick enough for a person to wrap their arms around it, shook a few times.

Leaves came rustling down.

Chu Zhengxiong’s eyes were bloodshot, and tears welled up in them.

"Damn it! These men in black are specifically targeting the Demon Hunting Squads, aren’t they?"

Ever since these men in black began their invasion,

their first targets had indeed been the Demon Hunting Squads in every city.

They rarely even ambushed the Public Security Bureau; instead, the Demon Hunting Squads became their primary targets.

Over this long period, many Demon Hunting Squads in various cities had suffered heavy losses.

The squad captains, in particular, were either killed or gravely injured.

This had thrown the Demon Hunting Bureau completely onto the defensive.

Seeing Chu Zhengxiong’s pained expression, Meng Die, Wei Shang, and Feng Lei all fell into deep thought.

Lin Yi nodded and said, "That’s a detail that’s easy to overlook!"

"It seems like these men in black have been systematically targeting the Demon Hunting Squads from the very beginning!"

"The Demon Hunting Squads have always been one of their intended targets!"

"Brother Chu, did you guys offend someone?"

Meng Die also glanced at Chu Zhengxiong. "He’s right. If we want to find a weakness in these men in black, this could very well be a clue!"

"According to our investigation, the targets of these men in black are mostly students from various universities!"

"That also includes some local middle school and high school students!"

"They attack these students indiscriminately!"

"However, your Demon Hunting Bureau also seems to be on their list of targets!"

"That’s what’s so puzzling. Why would they target the Demon Hunting Bureau? Did you really offend someone?"

At these words, Chu Zhengxiong turned to look at them.

The words Mo Yanfeng had said before flashed through his mind.

Mo Yanfeng had mentioned that there was someone among the men in black who felt familiar to him.

That very night, Mo Yanfeng had even suspected there was a mole from the men in black within the Demon Hunting Bureau.

Chu Zhengxiong thought for a long time before recounting everything Mo Yanfeng had told him.

After hearing this, the others all agreed with Mo Yanfeng’s speculation.

Only Lin Yi, with a grave expression, said, "We can’t be certain that these men in black are connected to the Demon Hunting Bureau based on speculation alone. According to the clues we have,"

"it’s not just the Demon Hunting Bureau they’ve infiltrated, but also the Town Martial Department and various universities!"

"The eldest disciple of the Elder Celestial Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain, isn’t he a case in point?"

"Does that mean these men in black are connected to Dragon Tiger Mountain?"

"If we want to find out who’s really leading them, we’ll have to keep investigating!"

"But I have an idea. Let’s jumble the important information and intelligence before we report it up to the various department heads. We can make fake reports appear true, and true reports appear false!"

"By uploading this mixed-up information, we might be able to smoke out the person pulling the strings in each department!"

"If we want to uncover the origins of these men in black and the hidden forces behind them,"

"we need to start with their leadership. As for the small fry, how much do you think they really know?"

After Lin Yi finished speaking,

Meng Die and Chu Zhengxiong exchanged a look.

"Leave it to a university student to think so clearly. Why don’t we form an alliance, then?"

"We’ll gather the people we each trust!"

"We can investigate these matters secretly and find the people hiding in the shadows!"

"No matter who they are, no matter what their status is!"

"We absolutely cannot shield them, and there will be no holding back!"

"Captain Chu, what do you think?"

Meng Die smiled and looked at Chu Zhengxiong.

A flash of resentment crossed his eyes. "Of course I have no problem with it. If it turns out the person behind all this is Captain Meng, I’ll take care of him myself without a moment’s hesitation!"

"Good. Then today, let’s make a verbal agreement!"

"All investigative news and results will be shared only among ourselves. Any clues we discover must be promptly shared with each other!"

"I have no problem with that!"

Chu Zhengxiong nodded.

And so, the Demon Hunting Squad and the Town Martial Department formed a partnership.

Seeing that they had finished their discussion, Lin Yi said with a smile, "Then I’ll leave the rest to you!"

"The sun is up. Wei Nan and I should get back and rest!"

Hearing this, Chu Zhengxiong nodded quickly. "You two should hurry back. Leave the rest to us!"

"That’s right. You two should go back to the university and focus on your studies!"

"With us and Captain Chu on the case, we won’t let you get distracted!"

"Once we find the real culprit, we’ll be sure to give you a full report!"

Lin Yi smiled and nodded. After he and Wei Nan said their goodbyes,

they started walking back toward Xingwu University.

Watching their retreating figures, Meng Die chuckled softly and said, "He’s really starting to show the responsibility and decisiveness of a Martial God."

Hearing this, Wei Shang and Feng Lei both nodded in agreement.

"That’s right. And his current realm has become unfathomable. What level has he actually reached?"

Meng Die glanced back at them.

She chuckled softly without saying a word, though she already had her suspicions.

’Lin Yi has already broken through to the Star Tempering Realm.’

’But I can’t say this out loud. If I did, and it reached the ears of those men in black,’

’it might bring unnecessary trouble to Lin Yi.’

’Besides, Old He said before...’

’...that the true target of these men in black might just be Lin Yi.’

’The so-called talented students are just a side objective.’

’Their goal is to control the future Martial God.’

’To make him serve them in the future. If they can’t achieve that goal...’

’...then there’s only one option left... destruction.’

’And along the way, kill all the other talented students.’

’Eradicate the very foundation of Martial Arts...’

’If those men in black were to find out how quickly Lin Yi is growing...’

’...that he’s already reached the Star Tempering Realm, they would become even more frantic.’

’So, this matter must be kept secret. They absolutely cannot find out.’

’Otherwise, Lin Yi will be in danger.’

...

"Senior Brother, is everything okay on the mountain?"

Back in his dorm,

Lin Yi gave Zhong Yan a call.

Last night, the men in black had attacked Xingwu University.

Dragon Tiger Mountain had also been attacked by them again.

So, as soon as Lin Yi got back, he hurriedly made a call to ask about the situation.

On the other end of the line, Zhong Yan boomed with laughter. "What kind of question is that? With your Senior Brother Zhong Yan here, would I let those men in black cause any trouble?"

"We beat them back before they even got through the mountain gate!"

"How about you? I heard your university was attacked too?"

Lin Yi chuckled. "Yeah, a lot of them came, but thankfully we held them off!"

’Although Zhong Yan was showing off a bit,’

’Lin Yi didn’t doubt his words in the slightest.’

’The last time Dragon Tiger Mountain suffered such a disaster,’

’and was nearly taken over completely by those men in black,’

’was mainly because of the eldest disciple’s betrayal, with his own disciples acting as inside agents.’

’They were only able to attack successfully because Dragon Tiger Mountain was completely unprepared.’

’Now that the traitor was gone and the inside agents had all been purged,’

’with Dragon Tiger Mountain’s combat strength, the men in black truly stood no chance.’

So, Lin Yi wasn’t at all surprised that they hadn’t been able to break through the mountain gate.

"Any news of Master yet?" Lin Yi asked again.

Hearing this, Zhong Yan’s brow furrowed slightly. "Him? Junior Brother, you’ve only just joined, you don’t know our Master!"

"When he’s on the mountain, all he does is play Fight the Landlord, or Bloody Battle to the End!"

"He doesn’t care about anything all day, just like an old man addicted to the internet. He doesn’t listen to anyone!"

"But once he leaves Dragon Tiger Mountain, he just completely lets himself go!"

"No one can control him, and no one can find him!"

"When he’s had his fun out there, he’ll probably come back!"

"Wait, do you need Master for something? Why not tell me? Maybe your Senior Brother can help you solve it?"

Zhong Yan said with a laugh over the phone.

In response, Lin Yi brushed it off. "No, I was just asking!"

"Things are chaotic everywhere right now, with those men in black causing trouble. I was just worried about the old man!"

Lin Yi said with a light chuckle.

’In truth, this was just an excuse for Zhong Yan’s sake.’

’The main reason was that I couldn’t get in touch with Yi Nanshan.’

’Ever since I broke through to the next realm, I’ve wanted to share the good news with my grandfather.’

’But my calls won’t go through, and he isn’t answering my video chats.’

’This had started to worry me.’

’I had also called Tang Qinru to ask about his situation.’

’But the answer I got was that my grandfather was busy handling some matters and would naturally come find me when he was finished.’

’This made me feel that something was vaguely wrong.’

’First, my grandfather disappears, and now the Elder Celestial Master has gone off wandering.’

’How could it be such a coincidence?’

’But whether it was Tang Qinru or Zhong Yan,’

’neither of them was telling the truth. It was as if they had planned it.’

’They were all hiding something from me...’

They chatted for a few more sentences, but he really couldn’t get any useful information out of Zhong Yan.

So Lin Yi finally hung up the phone.

Afterward, he began to sit in meditation to cultivate, entering the domain of the [Star River Qi Transformation Technique].

But the moment he entered,

the Daoist appeared before him once again.

He was only two meters away from Lin Yi.

This time, Lin Yi could see him more clearly.

He wore deep purple Daoist robes, and his hair and beard were completely white, without a single black strand.

The wrinkles on his face were as clear and deep as if they had been carved with a knife.

Though his eyes were closed, he projected an air of authority that commanded respect without anger.

His hands were formed into two Dharma Seals, and he sat there with his back ramrod straight.

Just as Lin Yi’s curiosity was growing,

a loud, resonant voice echoed.

[Do not be alarmed. Do not doubt. Clear your mind of distracting thoughts. This humble Daoist shall guide you!]

Hearing this, Lin Yi quickly nodded.

He slowly closed his eyes, clearing his mind of all his previous thoughts.

He silently recited the [Purifying Heart Technique] to eliminate all distracting thoughts.

Then, waves of Daoist chanting, faint and indistinct, drifted into Lin Yi’s ears.

The next moment, streams of runes began to circle around Lin Yi’s body, floating in the air.

These runes were like tiny sprites.

They danced and leaped joyfully, as if waving their arms and legs.

Soon, they all submerged themselves into Lin Yi’s body, one after another.

The moment these runes surged into his body,

they transformed into streams of cool energy that merged with his blood.

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